Ontario government creates $25.8 million cleantech innovation fund

The Ontario provincial government is starting a $25.8-million fund to support the creation and commercialization of green technologies.

The Low Carbon Innovation Fund will support technologies in areas such as alternative energy generation and conservation; new biofuels, bioplastics, and bioproducts; transportation; and carbon capture and usage.

According to the government, the initiative is funded by proceeds from the province’s carbon market.

The fund includes two streams:

The Technology Demonstration stream will support the development and commercialization of low carbon technologies through testing in real-world settings. Self-assessments and Expressions of Interest for the Technology Demonstration stream are due by September 22, 2017.

The Technology Validation stream will fund proof of concept or prototype projects from eligible Ontario companies or academic organizations. Applications for the Technology Validation stream will open in fall 2017.

Projects eligible for funding include new greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction technology that addresses a specific need, and projects that show a significant improvement to an existing GHG reduction technology solution.

Eligible projects must be conducted in Ontario and have the potential to play a significant role in helping the province meet its GHG reduction targets.

“By investing proceeds from Ontario’s carbon market into innovative initiatives such as the Low Carbon Innovation Fund, our government is helping accelerate the growth of Ontario’s thriving cleantech sector. This will ensure Ontario companies develop homegrown solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help the province transition to a prosperous, low-carbon economy,” said Chris Ballard, Ontario minister of the Environment and Climate Change.