OTTAWA, ON, July 21, 2020 /CNW/ - The Government of Canada remains committed to building a clean energy future to strengthen the economy, create good jobs and support the natural resource sectors. This commitment will be more important than ever as we prepare to reopen the economy and plan our recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Honourable Seamus O'Regan, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, today announced the five finalists of the $4.5-million Impact Canada Charging the Future Challenge aimed at accelerating battery innovations that have the potential to substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Each of the finalists could receive up to $700,000 to develop their battery prototype. The winner with the most promising battery breakthrough will be awarded a grand prize of $1 million. The finalists are:
- Agora Energy Technologies Ltd., from Vancouver, BC – to develop a long-duration, non-metal battery technology that repurposes CO2 to store and generate clean electricity.
- Calogy Solutions, from Sherbrooke, QC – to develop a high-performance thermal management technology that will improve the performance of electric vehicle batteries in cold-weather conditions.
- e-Zinc, from Toronto, ON – to develop a low-cost, long-lasting, zinc-based energy storage solution that is fire-resistant and easily recyclable.
- G-Batteries, from Ottawa, ON – to revolutionize a key manufacturing step that will significantly reduce costs and improve the performance of electric vehicle batteries and other lithium-ion batteries.
- Salient Energy, from Dartmouth, NS – to develop a manufacturing-ready zinc-ion battery that is cheaper, safer and longer-lasting than lithium-ion batteries for energy storage applications.
Today's $23-billion global battery industry is expected to grow to more than $90 billion over the next decade, providing a major economic opportunity for Canada across the battery value chain. Central to this growth is the increase in the number of electric vehicles, which are expected to exceed 130 million by 2030, as well as the growing use of storage technology to integrate renewable energy sources into the grid.
The Charging the Future Challenge is one of six cleantech challenges that are part of the Impact Canada initiative. The challenges were designed to attract a diverse range of problem solvers to generate breakthrough cleantech outcomes. Natural Resources Canada is investing $75 million over four years in several challenges, including Women in Cleantech, The Sky's the Limit, Power Forward, Crush It!, Indigenous Off-diesel Initiative and Charging the Future.
Quotes
"These finalists exemplify Canadian technological ingenuity. As the Government of Canada's champion for Impact Canada, I am proud of the inventive work that we are doing here in Canada that will have a real impact on our economy and the environment."
The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc
President of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada
"Developing new battery technology leads to well-paying jobs and fewer emissions. These finalists will help us integrate more renewable power onto our grids and help make electric vehicles more practical at getting people where they need to go."
The Honourable Seamus O'Regan
Canada's Minister of Natural Resources
"As one of the Charging the Future Challenge collaborators, Propulsion Québec is proud to see innovative and promising companies working on new technologies that will benefit the whole battery value chain across Canada. Such innovations will allow us to speed up the electrification of our economy and will certainly help us fight climate change."
Sarah Houde
CEO, Propulsion Québec
"InnovÉE was a partner from the start and has enthusiastically supported the Charging the Future challenge launched by Natural Resources Canada, since we consider the battery technology sector to be a highly strategic industry for Quebec and Canada as a whole. This challenge is therefore perfectly in line with our mission, which is to support and finance collaborative projects related to the electrical industry, smart grids, transportation electrification, smart vehicles and transportation systems by sharing the expertise and resources of industrial partners and research facilities. We are currently financing several other projects related to this promising sector."
André St-Pierre, Director General
InnovÉÉ – Innovation in electrical energy
Associated links
Impact Canada
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SOURCE Natural Resources Canada
For further information: Natural Resources Canada, Media Relations, 343-292-6100, [email protected]; Ian Cameron, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Natural Resources, 343-292-6837, [email protected]
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