Estimated reading time 5 minutes, 55 seconds.
Canadians and businesses use fuel every day — to produce and transport goods and to get from place to place. These fuels, like gasoline and diesel, help power our economy, but their extraction and combustion represent a significant source of pollution in Canada.
In the global race to net zero, countries and businesses around the world are making a shift to lower- and non-emitting fuels, and the federal government is positioning Canada as a leading producer of these fuels.
Jonathan Wilkinson, minister of energy and natural resources, announced in Thorold, Ont., a federal investment of $15 million to support six clean fuels projects across Canada, including $10 million for two projects in the Niagara region. The federal investments include:
- $5 million to support Azure Sustainable Fuels Corp. in delivering a FEED study to support the construction and operation of a sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) production facility in Port Colborne, Ont.
- If the project reaches a positive Final Investment Decision (FID), following the completion of the FEED study, it is expected that the Azure’s SAF project would support approximately 1,500 construction jobs and 150 full time jobs during operations in Port Colborne, Ontario.
- The FEED study is expected to be completed in by the end of 2024 and the construction of the planned facility would be commenced immediately following a positive FID. The proposed project will be located on the north end of Port Colborne, along the Welland Canal — a strategic location that will provide immediate access to local and global markets.
- The planned processing facility in Port Colborne will leverage Canada’s agricultural sector to produce SAF that will meet the growing demand to help reduce emissions from the aviation sector. Azure’s proposed project in Port Colborne is one of three projects that Azure is progressing in Canada, with support from the federal government, to provide a scalable growth platform to provide a significant source of SAF required to meet domestic and international mandates to reduce CO2 emissions.
These ongoing efforts and today’s investments will grow Canada’s clean fuels market and help position Canada as a reliable producer and supplier of the low-carbon fuels that Canadians and the world want and need. They are also important to the growth of Canada’s clean fuels industry in helping to keep pace with the global demand to act on climate change while bolstering energy security and delivering affordability.
“NRCan is proud to support the growth of the low-carbon economy in Canada through the Clean Fuel Fund. Today’s federal investment of $15 million in clean fuels projects across Canada, including $10 million for projects right here in the Niagara region, will help decarbonize the operations of high-emitting sectors like steel, mining and aviation, create good jobs in local communities, power homes and businesses efficiently and attract investment into Canada’s clean fuels market. We will continue to support innovative projects to decarbonize and keep going on the energy transition for the Niagara region and for the country as a whole,” said Wilkinson.
“Azure is dedicated to building the next major SAF facility to come to market. With the support of NRCan’s Clean Fuel Fund, Azure is advancing FEED studies in Ontario, Manitoba and British Columbia as part of a portfolio approach to provide a scalable growth platform that enables cost efficiencies and shared learnings. Azure is pleased to be partnering with the federal government on a suite of projects that will provide stable, long-term demand for Canadian agricultural products as well as support the energy transition and a cleaner environment by enabling the reduction of emissions from aviation by up to 80 per cent,” said Douglas Cole, CEO, Azure Sustainable Fuels Corp.
This press release was prepared and distributed by Natural Resources Canada.
