Canadian government invests in NGIF Emissions Testing Centre

NGIF Accelerator, the not-for-profit arm of NGIF Capital, said February 13 the Canadian Gas Association (CGA) and Prairies Economic Development Canada (PrairiesCan) had entered into a contribution agreement under which PrairiesCan will provide C$1.95mn of support to NGIF Accelerator’s Emissions Testing Centre (ETC) programme.

PrairiesCan is an arm of the Canadian government that supports economic growth across the Prairie provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Its non-repayable investment into the ETC will help the centre build capacity so that more small- and medium-sized businesses can access its testing facilities.

Specifically, the funding will enable the ETC programme lab at the University of Calgary, managed by the Gates Research Group, and live hosting environments at the West Wolf Lake gas plant, which is owned jointly by Tourmaline Oil and Perpetual Energy, to support the development and validation of new methane emissions monitoring and reduction technologies.

“As part of our government’s commitment to achieve a net-zero economy by 2050, we are working in partnership with industry to create new investment opportunities for clean technology innovation in Alberta and across the Prairies,” said Dan Vandal, the federal minister responsible for PrairiesCan. “By investing in the Canadian Gas Association and further building the capacity of its leading-edge NGIF Emissions Testing Centre programme, we are ensuring small- and medium-sized cleantech firms can access more opportunities to refine, validate, and commercialise their innovative emissions reduction solutions and create sustainable jobs in Alberta’s energy sector.”