Since before Confederation, Canadian gas utilities have been moving gaseous energy – at times with large quantities of hydrogen – through underground infrastructure. The Government of Canada’s Hydrogen Strategy points to the possibility of hydrogen’s share growing again. The Canadian Gas Association (CGA) welcomes the opportunity to work with government on this.
CGA and many of its natural gas delivery member companies have been working closely with federal officials to provide important expertise and insights that recognize the foundational role of our industry’s gaseous energy infrastructure to Canada’s future use of hydrogen. CGA and its members appreciate the Hydrogen Strategy’s acknowledgement of our industry’s engagement and look forward to getting to work on the components of the plan affecting our customers.
“An ever-increasing share of Canada’s energy delivery is occurring through affordable, reliable underground infrastructure and the prospect of more hydrogen in our energy mix reinforces the value of that infrastructure” noted CGA President and CEO Timothy Egan. “Our industry is committed to working with government to ensure that the role of hydrogen is addressed in a manner consistent with our customers’ ongoing energy needs for safe, reliable and affordable energy.”
The government’s blueprint for hydrogen recommends the creation of a Strategic Steering Committee and sector working groups, including one for natural gas utilities. The natural gas delivery industry supports the creation of a specific working group and calls on government to include the industry on the Strategic Steering Committee. The industry also supports project pre-feasibility funding as outlined in the Hydrogen Strategy and the essential role of regional blueprints and sub-regional hubs for hydrogen deployment. The government also points to the need for robust codes and standards development. CGA and its members underscore the importance of this work and believe Canada must leverage international best practices to inform its codes and standards development.
The Government of Canada has very ambitious emission reduction targets and has presented the Hydrogen Strategy as part of their plan to achieve them. CGA and the natural gas delivery industry have been driving a host of initiatives to reduce our emissions profile – including decades of work on energy efficiency, and our work over the last several years on innovation through our Natural Gas Innovation Fund (NGIF). Hydrogen has been a big part of our efforts to date and we look forward to the opportunity to work with the Government of Canada on it going forward.
About CGA
The Canadian Gas Association is the voice of Canada’s natural gas delivery industry. Its membership includes natural gas distribution and transmission companies, equipment manufacturers, and suppliers to the industry. Our utility members are active in eight provinces and two territories and meet 35% of Canadians’ energy needs through a network of 566,000 kilometers of underground infrastructure. This infrastructure can also be used to deliver renewable gases including renewable natural gas and hydrogen, in order to contribute to Canada’s greenhouse gas emission reductions. Today, over 7.25 million customer locations representing approximately two-thirds of Canadians, rely on natural gas for clean, affordable and reliable heating and power.
Contact
Aysha Raad
Director of Communications
Canadian Gas Association
araad@cga.ca