The federal government is investing $8 million into six commercial electric vehicle (EV) battery and charging projects from Québec companies through Natural Resources Canada’s (NRCan) Energy Innovation Program (EIP).
The innovation projects are meant to address operational challenges for electric work trucks, including medium-and heavy-duty commercial vehicle fleets, using Canadian intellectual property. The funding is part of a larger $25 million NRCan effort to improve EV charging availability and lower the carbon emissions of freight transportation.
Gamotech received $2 million, the largest investment of the EIP-backed projects, to develop mobile auxiliary energy storage and distribution systems for heavy-duty trucks powering job-site equipment. Equipment for public construction work, such as lifts, drills, and saws, is typically powered by the energy generated by an idling truck’s engine, which consumes gas and creates carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Gamotech provides an alternative through a giant lithium-ion battery system built right into a trailer or truck.
Other supported companies each received $1.5 million from EIP, including Polara Energy to develop an EV charging infrastructure with improved energy efficiency, EV Technologies Inc. to create a more durable battery for commercial vehicles, and Calogy Solutions to build a high-voltage lithium-ion battery pack prototype for medium-and heavy-duty vehicles.
Finally, Mogile Technologies received $930,000 to provide EV stakeholders with EV infrastructure data (such as uptime, charging success, power output, and reliability), while Destrier Electric received $600,000 to optimize the charging process of lithium-ion EV batteries in northern or remote regions
“Through these projects, we are delivering practical on-the-ground solutions for Quebecers with EVs and partnering with Quebec industry to drive the decarbonization of the transportation sector while strengthening our supply chains and energy independence,” Energy and Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson said in a statement.
The NRCan funding follows a period of turmoil for Québec’s EV sector, including Québec City-based Flo closing its manufacturing plant in Shawinigan, Que. and laying off approximately 80 employees last month. Additionally, Montréal-based heavy-duty EV maker Lion Electric and Swedish battery manufacturer Northvolt, which established operations in Montréal with financial help from the provincial and federal governments, both went bankrupt in the past year.
The office of Québec’s auditor general also recently revealed that it is investigating the millions of dollars in subsidies the electric battery industry received from the province.
Last week, NRCan contributed $2.5 million from the EIP to a project from Ottawa-based carbon capture startup TerraFixing. The project aims to improve direct air capture technology (DAC) in cold climates by scaling up CO2 capture beds using a porous mineral known as zeolite, and improving the mass transport of captured CO2. Its ultimate goal is to fit a 1,000-tonnes-per-year DAC unit into a shipping container.
Feature image courtesy Gamotech.