Meadow Lake Carbon-Capture Project Secures $2.5M in Federal Funding

A Meadow Lake project aimed at advancing carbon capture and storage technology at the Meadow Lake Tribal Council Bioenergy Centre has received $2.5 million in federal funding as part of a broader federal effort to support the transformation of Canada’s forestry sector.

The funding, announced Wednesday by Natural Resources Canada, will support the North Star BECCS Project, led by Carbon Alpha Corp. in partnership with the Meadow Lake Tribal Council.

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According to the federal government, the project will focus on the engineering and planning needed to integrate carbon capture technology into the existing bioenergy facility.

The project is intended to lay the technical groundwork for future implementation of bioenergy with carbon capture and storage, or BECCS, systems, which can enable low- and negative-emissions energy production.

Federal officials said the project will also “strengthen Indigenous partnerships, support local employment opportunities and help position Canada for future investment in large-scale carbon management solutions.”

The Meadow Lake project was among 56 initiatives across the country selected to share nearly $130 million in federal funding announced Wednesday.

Natural Resources Minister Tim Hodgson made the announcement while releasing the final report of the Canadian Forest Sector Transformation Task Force, which was established in January to identify practical measures to transform and retool the forest sector.

The federal government said the projects receiving funding will help develop new low-carbon wood technologies, expand the use of mass timber in construction, support Indigenous participation and forest-sector businesses, increase manufacturers’ capacity to add value to wood products and help diversify export markets.

Ottawa said Canada’s forest sector supports nearly 200,000 workers, including more than 11,000 Indigenous people, and contributes more than $20 billion annually to the country’s gross domestic product.

The funding announcement comes as federal, provincial and territorial ministers prepare to discuss the task force’s recommendations and a co-ordinated approach to transforming and attracting investment to Canada’s forest sector.