Natural Resources

The House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources met on April 30, 2026, to study Canadian energy exports. Appearing as witnesses were Evan Pivnick, Associate Director of Public Affairs at Clean Energy Canada; Frédéric Côté, General Manager of Nergica; Derek Estabrook, Executive Director of the Atlantic Hydrogen Alliance; and Brent Lakeman, Executive Director of the Edmonton Region Hydrogen Hub.

Evan Pivnick argued that global investment is overwhelmingly shifting to clean energy and electrification, driven by volatile fossil fuel prices and geopolitical instability, and that Canada must rapidly expand its clean electricity grid and prioritize supply chains for critical minerals, green steel, and grid technologies to position itself as a clean energy superpower. He recommended that Canada’s forthcoming clean electricity strategy coordinate trade and energy policies, increase investment in local grids and interties, and use content requirements as a bonus rather than a strict restriction to avoid adding costs to projects.

Frédéric Côté emphasized that Canada’s electricity generation must roughly double by 2050, with most new capacity coming from wind and solar, but that fragmented provincial planning and insufficient inter-regional transmission capacity are major barriers. He called for a transparent inter-regional planning process involving provinces, First Nations, and utilities; federal-provincial tools to advance priority transmission projects with clear cost allocation; and shared modelling and data to allow provinces to evaluate trade-offs consistently.

Derek Estabrook stated that Atlantic Canada is well positioned to export green hydrogen and its derivatives to western Europe, citing ice-free ports, abundant wind resources, and the recently approved Canada-Germany H2Global auction mechanism. He acknowledged that hydrogen is not yet cost-competitive with fossil fuels without government support but argued that sustained policy backing is needed to scale the sector, mirroring the early trajectories of solar and wind, and that hydrogen is best suited for hard-to-decarbonize sectors like heavy transportation, aviation, and high-temperature industrial processes.

Brent Lakeman highlighted that the Edmonton region has decades of experience producing low-carbon hydrogen from natural gas with carbon capture and storage, and that recent agreements with Kawasaki Heavy Industries aim to develop liquid hydrogen export infrastructure for Asian markets. He stressed that while production incentives are helpful, demand-side support and policy certainty—particularly around carbon markets—are critical to de-risk investments, and that hydrogen hubs are working to decarbonize transportation corridors with fuel-cell trucks and rail technologies.

During questions, Pivnick disagreed with the premise that electrification excludes oil and gas, arguing instead that Canada should maximize clean energy to meet new demand while natural gas remains a backup. Côté noted that Quebec already generates 97% of its electricity from renewables and that electrification can reduce reliance on imported petroleum. Estabrook and Lakeman both emphasized that hydrogen export and domestic use are complementary, not mutually exclusive, and that security of supply is a key demand from international buyers. The committee also briefly debated procedural matters, including a request to slow the pace of testimony for the interpreter, which was accommodated.