ALBERTA LAUNCHES ANNUAL INDUSTRIAL TRANSFORMATION CHALLENGE, INVESTING $50 MILLION IN EMISSIONS-REDUCING TECHNOLOGIES

The competition is open to applicants from across Alberta’s industrial and natural resource sectors, including agriculture, forestry, manufacturing, electricity, oil and gas, and more. Successful applicants are eligible for up to $10 million per project. The minimum request is $500,000. The maximum ERA contribution to a single project will be no more than 50 per cent of the project’s eligible expenses. 

 Applications are due by June 17, 2026, 5 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time (UTC-6h), and an informational webinar will be held on May 12, 2026, 9-10 a.m. Mountain Daylight Time (UTC-6h). 

If successful, the funded projects across all three ERA Industrial Transformation Challenges are estimated to deliver average annual greenhouse gas emissions reductions of 628,000 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent and 12.4 million tonnes cumulatively by 2050. Projects are estimated to create approximately 6,273 person-years of employment and just over $1 billion in GDP for Alberta by 2027. With a total ERA investment of $176.75 million and a total project value of $981 million.

RESOURCES

ELIGIBLE APPLICANTS

This Call is open to a broad range of lead applicants. Lead applicants can include innovators, technology developers, Indigenous communities, industrial facility owners/operators, industrial associations, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), research and development (R&D) organizations, universities, municipalities, not-for-profit organizations, government research labs, and individuals. Applicants are not required to be located in Alberta, but all applicants must demonstrate a clear value proposition for the province, including local partners where appropriate.

PARTNERSHIPS AND COLLABORATION

Collaboration between organizations is encouraged for this opportunity. Collaboration between partners can often represent a strong value proposition by demonstrating opportunities for technology validation, commercialization, and sharing of results. Applicants are encouraged to partner with Alberta’s post-secondary and research institutions, pilot test facilities, Indigenous communities, and municipalities where appropriate. These partnerships can offer significant benefits, including attracting and training highly skilled workers, increasing Alberta’s innovation capacity, engaging local communities, and leveraging complementary resources.

ELIGIBLE TECHNOLOGIES

The Industrial Transformation Challenge is not limited to any particular focus area or technology; however, ERA is seeking high-quality projects in areas of high strategic interest or where known technology gaps exist.  

All projects must include demonstrations of technology in a relevant environment (i.e., no standalone R&D, FEED studies, roadmaps, etc.). Projects may include these precursor elements but must culminate in a technology demonstration. The following list provides a non-exhaustive set of example technologies that ERA believes could represent compelling opportunities in this Call:  

• Digital solutions deployment for emissions reduction 
  • Data-Enabled industrial optimization and automation, including AI/ML applications; 
  • Digital twins for industrial assets; 
  • Advanced sensing and real‑time emissions monitoring systems;  
  • Predictive maintenance and reliability analytics platforms; 

• Process innovation and industrial energy systems 
  • Behind-the-fence clean power and/or heat generation for existing industrial facilities or new development (such as data centres)
  • Electrification of industrial heat and processes, including thermal energy storage 
  • Heat recovery, upgrading, and optimization  
  • Novel feedstocks for low-emissions products 
  • New chemistries for cement (incl. novel clinker substitutes), fertilizer, plastics, etc. 
  • Novel oil and gas processing and refining 
  • Next generation industrial carbon capture and/or industry-integrated carbon removals 
  • Novel bitumen extraction and processing technologies 
  • Major industrial facility upgrades in support of productivity improvements, combined with emissions reductions 

• Agriculture and agrifood solutions 
  • First-in-Alberta demonstrations or commercial deployments of best-in-class technologies in common use outside of Alberta 
  • Precision agriculture, automation, and digital farm management tools 
  • Low-emissions fertilizer and input technologies 
  • Agricultural waste management solutions 
  • Energy-efficient on-farm equipment and processes 
  • Novel tillage, seeding, cultivation, and harvesting techniques for crops 

• Advanced materials and circular economy 
  • Advanced materials derived from bitumen or other hydrocarbons 
  • Waste-to-value industrial or municipal byproduct conversion 
  • Circular manufacturing processes, including circular plastics 
  • Industrial symbiosis and shared resource systems 
  • Recycling and recovery of energy materials (from e.g. wind, solar, etc.) 
  • Critical minerals and materials extraction, processing, and manufacturing 

• Forestry and forest products   
  • Bioenergy or value-added products from forestry residues 
  • Biomaterials and forest-derived products 
  • Bioenergy with carbon capture and storage 
  • Facility modernization for emissions and efficiency gains 

• Land, air, and water solutions  
  • Soil remediation and land restoration technologies 
  • Water treatment, conservation, and reuse  
  • Soil carbon and soil health management technologies 
  • Land and water use management  
  • Nature-based solutions 

• Power grid innovation 
  • Grid-enhancing technologies, grid modernization, and grid-edge solutions  
  • Novel approaches for grid services, reliability, and resilience 
  • Transmission and distribution (including dynamic line rating, reconductoring, non-wires solutions, etc.) 
  • Hydrogen-based grid technologies, including gas turbine conversion, fuel cells, etc. 
  • Clean firm power generation, including geothermal energy, nuclear energy, and fuel cells 
  • Next-generation energy storage (e.g. solid-state batteries, long-duration storage, etc.) 
  • Novel renewable energy and repowering/upgrading of existing renewable facilities 

STAGE OF DEVELOPMENT

Expressions of Interest are invited for projects that will advance technologies to the stages of field pilot, demonstration, or first-of-kind commercial implementation by project completion, as described below.

PROJECT LOCATION

All projects supported through this Challenge must pilot, demonstrate, or deploy the technology within Alberta. Applicants do not need to be based in Alberta, but all applicants must demonstrate a clear value proposition for the province.

APPROVAL PROCESS

Projects will be selected through ERA’s competitive review process. A team of experts in science, engineering, business development, commercialization, financing, and environmental impact quantification will conduct an independent, rigorous, and transparent review overseen by a Fairness Monitor. ERA’s Board of Directors will make the final funding decision based on these experts’ recommendations.

KNOWLEDGE SHARING  

All ERA funding recipients are required to produce a final outcomes report that is shared publicly for the broader benefit of Alberta. Recipients will be required to report on project outcomes, achievements, and lessons learned, including emissions reductions, job creation, and other environmental, economic, and social benefits.

ABOUT EMISSIONS REDUCTION ALBERTA (ERA): 

For 17 years, ERA has invested revenues from the carbon price paid by large emitters to accelerate innovative clean technology solutions. Since 2009, ERA has committed $993 million toward 320 projects worth $10.3 billion, helping reduce emissions, create competitive industries, and unlock new economic opportunities.

ABOUT TECHNOLOGY INNOVATION AND EMISSIONS REDUCTION (TIER) REGULATION

The Technology Innovation and Emissions Reduction (TIER) Regulation is at the core of emissions management in Alberta. The TIER system implements Alberta’s industrial carbon pricing and emissions trading system. TIER helps industrial facilities find innovative ways to reduce emissions and invest in clean technology to stay competitive and save money.