Regional Energy and Resource TablesFound below info at the government site re Regional Energy and Resource Tables. After reading, it appears that "fast-tracking" as mentioned by Freeland this week is a relative term. Once the tables are completed in early 2023, say first quarter, action plans will then be completed for the priority projects over the next two years - hopefully these plans will be actioned sequentially during this period on the basis of need and readiness. What's confounding is given there are EV manufacturers chomping at the bit for our critical minerals, that the government process seems not only late but drawn-out. With some luck, FT can either find a way to accelerate the process, find an EV manufacturer white knight soon or kick the can down the road until these tables put some wind into their sail. The macro is fantastic, likely better than its ever been for FT, but without more info it seems we're so close and yet still so far. ...
Our goal is to have Regional Tables established with every province and territory by early 2023.
There are three main elements to the process:
- Close individual partnerships between the federal government, provinces, and territories to identify and accelerate an agreed-upon list of two to four key economic growth priorities in each province and territory.
- A tailored approach to engagement with Indigenous partners to reflect their priorities and perspectives on regional opportunities.
- A process to seek input from municipal governments, experts, industry, labour, non-profit organizations and others.
Once the high-impact and place-specific opportunities are determined, joint action plans will be developed with each province and territory for close collaboration over the next two years. Each joint action plan would focus on tangible steps to align resources and investments, streamline regulatory and permitting processes, and advance policy tools, as well as identifying key issues and barriers to be overcome.
These efforts will culminate in the development of economic strategies that identify the top economic opportunities in each region and associated plans to advance them. These strategies will also integrate Indigenous perspectives on regional opportunities; incorporate input from experts; and engage with industry, labour, municipalities and other relevant stakeholders.
In addition to addressing key economic opportunities associated with a low-carbon transition, the Regional Tables will provide a forum to discuss how we can work together to ensure that electrical generation capacity and our provincial and regional electrical grids will be capable of meeting the requirements of decarbonisation and the increased demand associated with broad electrification.
While the Regional Tables are a partnership between the federal and provincial and territorial governments, they are also a whole-of-government initiative being led at the federal level by Natural Resources Canada and involving multiple federal institutions, including Innovation, Science, and Development Canada, the Regional Development Agencies and the Canada Infrastructure Bank.
https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/climate-change/regional-energy-and-resource-tables/24356