The trade war with the United States was on the minds of Canada’s minister of energy and natural resources during a stop in London, Ont., on Monday. “We are not going to let another nation tell us which countries we can do trade deals with,” said Tim Hodgson. Amidst a tour of a biogas facility, the minister made it clear the trade war with the United States will not falter industry. “The plan is to get our energy and our critical minerals to all of our allies. That’s what we’re focused on,” said Hodgson. Part of that directive is to invest $19 million into a producer of natural gas from organic waste. Announced at Generate Upcycle on Green Valley Road, the minister said the investment is an example of what’s to come. “More Canadian-made energy solutions, like what you are seeing here behind us,” he said. With the company’s investment, the total price tag reaches $60 million. The money will go towards an expansion, already underway, to increase production at the site. The firm uses science to turn green bin material from Londoners and other centres into energy, said London plant manager Girish Mohanan “So, you want to convert that biogas into something that can be pumped into the Enbridge pipeline and then that comes back into our homes,” Mohanan said. In Canada, the expansion could power 4,500 homes a year. But the company’s president conceded that plans to seal a deal with at least one American client recently fell through under the threat of tariffs, which the firm remains unaffected by. “We wound up not closing because of their concern that at some point, there might be a tariff in place, and they did not want that financial risk,” explained Bill Caesar. Despite the loss, the firm intends to hire a handful of new staff once the London expansion is complete in 2027.
