Good morning. I'm pleased to be speaking with you today, representing the department on the subject of clean energy.

ISED's mandate is to work with Canadians in all areas of the economy to improve conditions for investment, enhance innovation performance, increase Canada's share of global trade and build a fair, efficient and competitive marketplace.

The department has a purview across a wide range of industrial sectors, from steel and aluminum, chemicals and plastics, cement and concrete, critical minerals, clean technologies, automobiles, aerospace, space and marine to digital, AI and quantum, to name several.

As ISED undertakes its work, there is recognition that the competitiveness and growth potential for Canadian industry will include access to and use of clean energy. For instance, the use of hydrogen and renewable natural gas could significantly lower the emissions intensities of industries like steel and cement.

However, as the mandate for the committee’s study quite rightly points out, Canadian businesses face stiff competition as other countries, including the United States, seek to provide their industries with a similar clean energy advantage.

As Canadian industry and other countries seek pathways to decrease emissions and sources of clean energy, Canada's dynamic and robust clean technology sector is well positioned as a supplier of choice for hydrogen, low-carbon and renewable fuels and wind technologies, as well as for clean digital technologies and services which is an area of significant innovation.

In this context ISED uses its range of regulatory, legislative, policy and program tools in support of the government's clean growth and clean energy priorities. For example, ISED and Natural Resources Canada deliver the clean growth hub initiative, a unique whole-of-government focal point dedicated to helping Canadian clean technology innovators and adopters navigate the vast array of federal programs and services most relevant to their needs.

Since its creation in 2017, the hub has served over 2,700 small- and medium-sized enterprises across Canada, leveraging the knowledge, expertise and network of its 17 member departments and agencies to provide tailored advice. In 2022, approximately 44% of its clients were companies in the clean energy sector.

ISED also created the industrial decarbonization team, or IDT, to support large-scale clean energy and decarbonization projects through enhanced collaboration across departments on federal programs and regulatory issues. The IDT assesses and provides advice on projects that require more tailored support in view of their complexity and ability to accelerate Canada's path to a competitive net-zero economy.

Another part of the federal government's clean technologies and clean energy tool kit is the strategic innovation fund's net-zero accelerator. The $8-billion net-zero accelerator initiative is a tool to help support Canada-wide GHG emissions reduction targets, groundbreaking investments in low-carbon fuels and clean energy-related technologies in areas such as fuel cells, small modular reactors and wind energy.

Clean energy-related investments include a $15-million contribution to AVL Fuel Cell Canada for a hydrogen fuel cell R and D centre in Vancouver and $25 million to LM Wind Power for the expansion of large, complex wind turbine blade production in Gaspé.

Budget 2023 provided an additional $500 million to the program to support clean technologies and redirected $1.5 billion of its existing resources toward projects in clean technologies, critical minerals and industrial transformation.

With that, thank you. I'd be happy to take your questions.