The first-ever Canada Green Buildings Strategy introduces the Government of Canada's plan to make life cost less for Canadians, fight climate change, and support good jobs across the country. By improving energy efficiency in Canada's homes and buildings through retrofitting, we can save Canadians money on their energy bills and reduce building emissions.
Today, the Minister of Transport and Quebec Lieutenant, the Honourable Pablo Rodriguez, and Joël Lightbound, Member of Parliament for Louis-Hébert, on behalf of the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Canada's Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, announced a federal investment of $12.6 million in the Société de financement et d'accompagnement en performance énergétique Canada (SOFIAC). This funding will help them accelerate their expansion into energy efficiency for commercial buildings and multi-unit residential buildings, helping building owners and tenants save on their energy bills and reduce emissions.
Through the Green Buildings Strategy, the Government of Canada will invest $177 million for Deep Retrofit Accelerator Initiative projects like this, which support upgrades to multiple building systems and equipment in commercial, institutional, or mid- or high-rise multi-unit residential buildings across Canada. These projects will replace roofs, upgrade windows, insulation, or building cladding, to save money and cut pollution.
At a time when Canadians are feeling the impacts of the high cost of living, another key part of the Green Buildings Strategy will help low-to-median-income Canadians, including renters, upgrade their homes to save money on their energy bills and cut pollution. This new program, the Canada Greener Homes Affordability Program, will provide retrofits at no cost to the household and save them hundreds of dollars on their energy bills per year.
Canadians want to live in sustainable communities: places with clean air, affordable homes and good jobs. The Government of Canada's investments in greening buildings and switching from fossil fuels to clean electricity are key to lowering GHG emissions while supporting a strong economy and making life cost less.
