As CEO of Invest in Canada, Laurel Broten looks at the world through a lens of sustainability.
In leading Canada’s national investment promotion agency, Ms. Broten continues to maintain a sustainability mindset that runs deep. She is helping foster a massive clean energy transition in Canada, which will also benefit the world.
In support of Canada’s commitments to meeting its target of net-zero emissions by 2050, Invest in Canada seeks to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) that helps achieve sustainability goals. And Canada possesses a wealth of advantages that offer global companies a compelling value proposition to make clean energy investments.
The case for Canada
In her interview, Ms. Broten touches on many of those reasons companies expand to Canada.
Canada’s plentiful and precious natural resources – including hydroelectricity, wind and solar power, hydrogen, biofuels and critical minerals vital to the clean energy transition – are foundational reasons for FDI to flow to Canada. Canada’s clean electricity grid, 83% of which comes from non-GHG emitting sources, is a significant factor in global companies choosing Canada.
She also presents Canada’s talent as a major attraction for companies. Canada’s skilled labour advantage is built on having produced the world’s best educated workforce. A talented workforce means that Canada is at the forefront of research and development into innovative technologies ranging from hydrogen fuel cells to carbon capture and storage.
And Canada recently introduced enhanced clean energy programs and incentives, such as investment tax credits. Soon thereafter, it rose into the top two in the world for green energy investment attractiveness.
Enabling vital clean energy transitions
Looking back at Ms. Broten’s sustainability journey, upon her election in 2003, she was a member of a government preparing to become the first jurisdiction in all of North America to eliminate coal-fired electricity generation.
At the time, coal was about 25% of Ontario’s electricity mix. By 2014, Ontario produced no electricity from coal. The elimination of coal-powered electricity generation stands as the single largest action to reduce GHG (greenhouse gas) emissions on the continent.
Such a monumental transition proved to her how positive change can occur when hard decisions are made and strategic action is taken.
Today, action is taking the form of large investments in clean energy transitions that include hydrogen, wind, solar, biomass, carbon management and SMR (small modular reactor) projects being developed in Canada right now.
A cleaner, greener future
Ms. Broten emphasizes that when Canada attracts FDI creating major clean energy projects, both Canada and the world benefit. Being part of the journey to clean, sustainable energy will leave a better world not only tomorrow but for future generations.
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