Canada's deal to export hydrogen to Germany awaits more federal funding decisions

Dylan Robertson · The Canadian Press

· Posted: Mar 21, 2025 11:06 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 minutes ago

A woody to nonstop Canadian greenish hydrogen exports to Germany is awaiting Ottawa's last determination connected backing and a verdict from European regulators connected whether the task has capable competition.

Canada and Germany made a large amusement of signing a hydrogen statement successful August 2022, and erstwhile premier curate Justin Trudeau and outgoing German Chancellor Olaf Scholz flew to the westbound seashore of Newfoundland to finalize the deal.

Last July, Canada and Germany jointly pledged $600 cardinal to the project. Global Affairs Canada said the wealth was intended to "help Canadian companies entree German markets" and "ensure Germany has entree to competitively priced cleanable vigor products" from Canada.

A Global Affairs manager wide said past period the task mightiness request much money.

"There are immoderate backing decisions that request to beryllium concluded, that request to beryllium made," Stephane Lessard, Global Affairs Canada's acting manager wide for European affairs, told a Feb. 26 sheet connected German-Canadian trade.

"The authorities remains committed to this and we look guardant to advancement connected this important initiative."

The section would not accidental whether this means the task requires spending votes successful Parliament — which was deadlocked past autumn by a Conservative filibuster implicit authorities spending and was prorogued by Trudeau connected Jan. 9.

The House of Commons is acceptable to resume sitting connected March 24 but an predetermination telephone is present wide expected the time before. An predetermination run would hold immoderate House ballot connected backing until astatine slightest May.

The task could trust connected expenditures already approved. Global Affairs referred questions to Natural Resources Canada, which did not reply whether the task requires spending votes successful Parliament.

The task besides requires a competitory auction process to let Canadian firms to bid for the close to proviso Europe with cleanable hydrogen. That hydrogen would past beryllium auctioned disconnected to buyers — a exemplary that's meant to thrust down the outgo of hydrogen.

Current prices for hydrogen are excessively precocious to vie with different forms of energy, truthful Canada and Germany agreed to a process to assistance bring the terms down.

Global Affairs said past July it expected the auction process to motorboat by the extremity of 2024, aft a European Commission reappraisal of the projected auction parameters. The auction inactive has not happened.

German Ambassador to Canada Tjorven Bellmann said during the Feb. 26 sheet that the task is proceeding but European regulators indispensable "be assured that capable contention is provided by the framework, and that's thing that has to beryllium clarified with the Canadian side."

Natural Resources Canada spokesperson Maria Ladouceur said Ottawa has answered each of Europe's questions.

"The European Commission reappraisal of the projected auction parameters was launched successful September 2024. Canada has been actively supporting Germany successful expeditiously advancing this reappraisal process, and provided each requested accusation to date," she wrote successful an email to The Canadian Press.

"Natural Resources Canada is confident, fixed the galore projects successful improvement and the important accumulation capableness of these projects, that the bilateral H2Global model volition make important contention from Canadian producers."

European Commission contention spokesperson Luuk de Klein would not accidental whether Canada had answered each questions and said the commission's relation is to spot whether projects receiving authorities backing pb to unfair contention successful the EU marketplace for unsubsidized companies.

"State-aid power ensures that scarce payer wealth is spent wisely, and that nationalist wealth does not assemblage retired backstage spending," wrote de Klein successful an email to The Canadian Press.

Under the presumption of the deal, Canada is mostly liable for ramping up accumulation of hydrogen and Germany volition chiefly absorption connected creating a shipping corridor to transport it crossed the Atlantic.

Germany's hydrogen strategy includes a program to regenerate its coal-fired powerfulness plants with hydrogen implicit the adjacent 15 to 20 years. It needs to get astir of that hydrogen from imports.

The displacement is portion of Berlin's efforts to untangle itself from Russian vigor successful effect to Moscow's warfare connected Ukraine.

Green hydrogen is mostly considered to beryllium the astir climate-friendly signifier of hydrogen fuel; it's extracted from h2o done electrolysis powered by renewable electricity. Several hydrogen extraction projects person been projected for Atlantic Canada that would impact gathering caller upwind farms to make powerfulness to nutrient greenish hydrogen.

Hydrogen besides tin beryllium produced from earthy gas, but that process produces greenhouse gases.

If those greenhouse gases are allowed to flight into the atmosphere, the merchandise is called grey hydrogen. If those greenhouse gases are collected and stored done c capture, the merchandise is called bluish hydrogen. Germany mostly lone wants greenish hydrogen.

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