Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, speaks at the National Press Theatre in Ottawa on Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2017.Sean Kilpatrick/The Globe and Mail
The federal government will give $700-million over the next five years to the Business Development Bank of Canada in a bid to grow Canada's clean technology industry.
The funding is intended to enable the bank to take on more risk, providing high-potential clean tech firms with more capital to expand their operations and hire additional staff.
The investment will be announced today in Montreal by Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains and Environment Minister Catherine McKenna.
The money is part of the government's promise, made in last year's budget, to invest $2.3-billion in clean technologies.
Bains is also set to announce the launch of a federal government "clean growth hub," aimed at supporting clean tech companies and projects, co-ordinating existing programs and tracking results.
The government argues that investment in clean tech is good for both the environment and the economy.
"Today's announcement demonstrates our government's commitment to create well-paying, middle-class jobs while growing the economy and protecting the environment," Bains said in a news release obtained in advance by The Canadian Press.