This week, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, joined his international counterparts as the Vice-Chair of the 2024 International Energy Agency's (IEA) Ministerial to strengthen international collaboration on global energy security and the transition to net zero by 2050.
The IEA is the leading global intergovernmental organization that provides independent analysis, data and policy recommendations on the global energy sector. As a founding member of the IEA, Canada was pleased to mark the organization's 50th anniversary, to take stock of existing progress and to help set the strategic direction of the IEA moving forward.
While at the IEA, Minister Wilkinson advanced the following priorities on behalf of the Government of Canada, all of which were reflected in the final IEA Ministerial Communique:
1. To accelerate the development and adoption of the technologies needed to achieve clean affordable, secure and reliable energy systems in Canada and abroad, including by:
· Highlighting Canadian leadership at the IEA's first Energy Innovation Forum, where leaders from industry, think-tanks and member countries discussed the importance of supporting emerging clean technologies and scaling them to adoption.
· Recognizing the important role that the nuclear sector is playing in the global energy transition and welcoming the IEA's Communique, which, for the first time in history, recognizes nuclear as a reliable source of energy.
· Signing an agreement between Canada the U.K. to work together on nuclear fusion. The U.K. is one of Canada's strongest bilateral partners in nuclear energy and one of the global leaders in fusion research and development, and Canada and the U.K. have complementary capabilities in fusion energy.
· Announcing support to secure and increase the resiliency of Ukraine's power system by helping Ukraine's allies and partners support power system reconstruction and investment, and the development of a power system security model that will support Ukraine's energy plan.
2. To urge an inclusive, people-centred approach to the global energy transition, an area where Canada is a global leader, including by:
· Leading a high-level dialogue, Building a Prosperous & Inclusive Economy for the Future, to discuss ongoing efforts to ensure the benefits of a clean economy are broadly felt by all - including through Canada's Sustainable Jobs interim Action Plan and proposed legislation, and Canada's new Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program that will advance Indigenous leadership in the clean economy as equity partners.
· Inviting representatives from the First Nations Major Projects Coalition, Chief Shalene Gale and Niilo Edwards, to participate in the Government of Canada's official delegation to the IEA Ministerial and supporting the participation of Indigenous Peoples in energy policymaking and projects.
· Welcoming new signatories to the Clean Energy Ministerial's Equal by 30 Campaign, led by the Government of Canada, which works to accelerate gender equality and diversity in clean energy transitions and close the gender gap by 2030. The campaign now includes all G7 countries and over 200 signatories from industry, governments and non-profit organizations. In advance of the visit, the EU Commission became the latest signatory to the campaign.
3. To draw in private sector capital and investment in Canada that supports the global transition to net-zero emissions, including by:
· Promoting Canadian businesses abroad and attracting investment in Canada with a strong delegation of leading industry and clean tech companies including EverWind, NanoOne, Cameco from the offshore wind, clean tech and nuclear sectors in Canada.
· Implementing the Canada-US Memorandum of Understanding on Energy Cooperation, signed in June 2021, on sustainable and equitable energy transitions, clean energy innovation, connectivity and low-carbon transportation. During their bilateral meeting at this IEA Ministerial, Secretary Granholm and Minister Wilkinson agreed to deepen collaboration in the areas of critical minerals and nuclear supply chains.
· Continuing work under the Canada-France Bilateral Dialogue on Critical Minerals, signed in September 2023, which deepens Canada-France cooperation on critical minerals by working to secure critical minerals supplies, promote investment, collaborate in industrial and academic research and development, and promote global ESG standards.
· Championing the Sustainable Critical Minerals Alliance, which was established at the Biodiversity COP15 along with the U.S., U.K., France, Japan, Germany and Australia, to drive global uptake of environmentally sustainable and socially inclusive and responsible mining, processing and recycling practices and responsible critical minerals supply chains.
Canada is pleased to support the international energy and climate cooperation, research and programs of the IEA under the leadership of Dr. Faith Birol. The Government of Canada will continue to work actively and collaboratively with our international partners to promote energy security and energy affordability and accelerate the global energy transition to net zero no later than 2050.
