Federal ecosystem of support for clean technology

At this early stage of innovation, you are:

• translating discovery science into applied research and development (R&D)
• formulating a technology
• developing a proof of concept
• validating your ideas through analytical or laboratory studies

Support available across government:

• funding for R&D and to develop international collaborations
• grants and fellowships for post-secondary or foreign researchers
• prize-based challenges for proofs of concept
• federal laboratory services
• advice – technical, intellectual property (IP), standards, finance
• scientific research and development tax credits

Attributes of a strong candidate:

• incorporated in Canada
• idea has technical merit
• potential for significant environmental benefits
• solution addresses a market challenge
• collaborating with end users, other levels of government, academia or the non-profit sector

At this stage of innovation, you are:

• proving the technology will work
• validating the technology through demonstration or pilots
• testing in simulated or real environments

Support available across government:

• funding to pilot or demonstrate a technology
• grants and fellowships for post-secondary researchers
• prize-based challenges to develop prototypes
• federal laboratory services
• advice – technical, intellectual property (IP), standards, finance
• scientific research and development tax credits

Attributes of a strong candidate:

• incorporated in Canada
• strong scientific and technical basis for innovation
• proven in a laboratory setting
• potential for significant and quantifiable environmental benefits
• strong business plan and strategy (including an IP strategy)
• strong demand for the solution
• collaborating with end users, other levels of government, academia or the non-profit sector

At this stage of innovation, you are:

• have validated your technology
• are ready to make your first sales
• are working to attract customers
• are proving that your innovation will work in its final form

Support available across government:

• funding for the first commercial plant
• funding for the first material product order
• financing solutions including repayable financing and guarantees
• government of Canada as the first customer
• advice – human resources, domestic and international market intelligence, intellectual property (IP), risk protection

Attributes of a strong candidate:

• incorporated in Canada
• strong business plan and strategy
• commercially validated IP-protected technology
• demonstrate environmental benefits
• collaborate with end users, other levels of government and foreign partners
• strong global commercialization potential
• job creation potential
• regional economic development potential

At this stage of innovation you:

• have an innovative product or service that is market-ready
• are making regular sales
• have customers lined up
• are investigating capital to meet the growing demand for the technology
• may be considering fueling your scale up through exports

Support available across government:

• financing solutions (repayable loans, venture capital and guarantees)
• connections with foreign investors and buyers
• advice – human resources (HR), finance, marketing, strategy, international growth, large projects

Attributes of a strong candidate:

• incorporated in Canada
• commercially validated IP-protected technology
• strong business plan and strategy
• demonstrate environmental benefits
• annual sales and commercial contracts
• capacity to scale up to meet market demand
• job creation potential
• regional economic development potential

At this stage of innovation you:

• are ready to take your proven technology to foreign markets
• may be simultaneously scaling up and growing
• are seeking connections to deploy the environmental solutions globally

Support available across government:

• training, networking and facilitating contacts with foreign markets
• financing solutions (repayable loans, equity financing, risk protection and guarantees)
• contacts with foreign government buyers
• government of Canada contracting on behalf of the Canadian company
• advice – international finance, markets, trade agreements, market entry risk

Attributes of a strong candidate:

• incorporated in Canada
• commercially validated IP-protected technology
• demonstrate environmental benefits
• annual sales and commercial contracts
• strong business plan and strategy
• capacity to scale up to meet market demand
• job creation potential
• regional economic development potential

In this category, you are not a clean technology producer, but you are a business adopting clean technology to reduce your environmental impact.

Support available across government:

• funding for some costs of adoption projects
• funding to support specific environmental outcomes (e.g. reducing GHGs)
• funding targeted to improve the environmental performance of a key Canadian sector
• solutions from federal laboratories
• advice – available clean technologies, rebates and incentives
• tax incentives for clean energy equipment and zero-emission vehicles

Attributes of a strong candidate:

• expectation of demonstrable environmental benefits or efficiencies
• alignment with federal / provincial / territorial and local / Indigenous priorities and values
• commitment to improving your organization's environmental performance and energy efficiency
• technical capacity to incorporate innovative clean technologies into your organization's operations
• financial commitment to adopting clean technology, in addition to federal / provincial / territorial support
• significant job creation potential
• significant regional economic development potential