RE:RE:RE:If pharmacare not fix by March 1 st ….trudope gone Here are the early details of the heat pump deal. We can't even show that people will save as the time horizon is 10-20 years. Think about it...in 2009 did you think we would have energy costs such as we have today?
To boot, energy costs are nearly non-decipherable and change from city to province across the country. One size never fits all.
Greener Homes Grant Program to enter “New Phase”
…but Details Remain Unclear
Yesterday, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Jonathan Wilkinson announced that the federal government soon will establish a “new phase” of the Canada Greener Homes Initiative (CGHI).
As a key part of Canada’s forthcoming Canada Green Buildings Strategy, which will focus on energy and housing affordability, this next phase will offer supports that are more accessible to Canadian households with low to median incomes, so that energy cost-savings are available to those who need them most. At the same time (confirming earlier announcements) he stated that, “owing to the success of the program to date, the government
will stop accepting new applications within the next two weeks to prepare for the transition to the next phase of Greener Homes.”
Initially projected to run seven years, the government announced last November that the program would likely be ended by March 2024, at which time, new applications would no longer be accepted due to the likelihood of hitting the original budget ceiling. Canadians who have already applied for the grant are again re-assured in the recent announcement that their applications will be processed and that the hundreds of thousands of required follow-up energy evaluations will continue as planned for the duration of the program.
There are currently about 300,000 initial applications from households who are in the system, and who may have had an initial evaluation done, but for whom no actual retrofits have been completed. This means that there will be work for HVAC contractors related to this program, well beyond March.
According to NRCan, since CGHI was launched almost three years ago, the program has helped over 165,000 Canadians upgrade their homes and save an average of $386 per year on their energy bills. As the program continues, the Government of Canada expects to help over half a million Canadians upgrade their homes and save on their bills.
While details have not yet been spelled out, the new version of the program will have a revised approach. As currently delivered, the Greener Homes Grant program is open to Canadian households of all income levels, and while many have had the means to access both the Grant and Loan programs to complete their retrofits, “this option still isn’t financially accessible for all Canadians.” The next phase of the CGHI will ensure those who may not have the financial means to access it, can do so.
According to NRCan,
The next phase of the Canada Greener Homes Initiative will complement the suite of federal government initiatives available to Canadians to upgrade their homes and reduce their bills. This includes the Canada Greener Homes Loan, which continues to provide interest-free loans of up to $40,000 to Canadians of all income levels to undertake home energy improvements. It also includes the Oil to Heat Pump Affordability (OHPA) program, which provides grants of up to $10,000 to low-to-median-income oil-heated households across Canada who want to make the switch to a heat pump. Under new OHPA enhancements announced in the fall of 2023, the federal government has increased these grants to $15,000 for Canadians living in co-delivery provinces that have stepped up with a minimum of $5,000. The federal government will also be providing a one-time payment of $250 to low-to-median-income households in co-delivery jurisdictions when they are pre-approved to transition to a heat pump. Taken together, these enhanced OHPA grants help cover the average cost of a heat pump and will help those who make the switch save between $1,500 to $4,700 per year on their energy bills. Regular updates on Canada’s energy and housing affordability programs are available on
the Canada Greener Homes Initiative website.
Based on conversations with NRCan staff, HRAI expects that further announcements concerning new program measures will not be made until the Federal budget is released (likely in April). In the meantime, HRAI will continue to advocate for program amendments or enhancements that work well for the industry, through all available channels, including the pre-budget consultation process.
More about the Canada Greener Homes Initiative - The Canada Greener Homes Grant offered Canadians grants of up to $5,000 to make energy-efficient upgrades to their homes and up to $600 to pay for an EnerGuide home energy evaluation, before and after retrofits. Eligible home upgrades include replacing windows and doors, adding insulation, sealing air leaks, improving heating and cooling systems (e.g., heat pumps) and installing smart thermostats and solar panels.
- Out of the over half a million households that have applied for a Greener Homes Grant to-date, over 165,000 have received grants. Given that, on average, 1.2 tonnes/year of pollution are reduced for every home that receives a Canada Greener Homes Grant, this has meant a reduction of 194,700 tonnes/year of pollution under the program to date, the equivalent of taking almost 60,000 cars off the road. By 2027, the Canada Greener Homes Grant will have helped over 500,000 Canadians and reduced the amount of emissions equivalent to taking nearly 185,000 cars off the road.