The November 2021 report by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE) presents the variety for funding and opportunities for implementing Strategic Energy Management programs in Canada.

The market study identifies SEM program offerings in Canada by location, administrator, description, eligibility and performance requirements, incentives and other criteria.

To support energy management, Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) provides a suite of tools and programs, such as an Energy Savings Toolbox and an Energy Management and Information System (EMIS) Planning Manual and Tool.

A recent NRCan offering, the Energy Manager Program, provided $3.1 million CAD across four provinces from 2019 to 2020. Cost sharing was available for activities including hiring energy managers and conducting assessments. The program was quickly oversubscribed, demonstrating that there is strong market interest in SEM and that more funding is needed to meet the demand.

The Canadian Industry Partnership for Energy Conservation (CIPEC) is a voluntary national network of industrial companies, trade associations, and allies established in 1975 to improve industrial energy efficiency and administered by NRCan. The “leaders” in the CIPEC program receive cost-sharing benefits for implementing ISO 50001 and EMIS, recognition through ENERGY STAR®, and other benefits. Some provincial governments have also positioned themselves to support SEM. In addition to forming partnerships with NRCan to administer SEM programs, they are offering incentives to help spur adoption of SEM. For example, Energy Transition Quebec provides financial support to facilities in Quebec for energy management, including funding for energy managers and ISO 50001 training. From 2015 to 2020, the British Columbia Ministry of Energy and Mines provided funding on top of NRCan’s industrial energy management program incentives.

  • Continuing to work with provincial and territorial governments to develop a new model “retrofit” code for existing buildings by 2022, with the goal of collaborating with provinces and territories to have this code in place by 2025.
  • Accelerating work with provincial and territorial governments to develop and adopt increasingly stringent model building codes, with the ultimate goal of a net-zero energy ready model building code by 2030.