THOROLD, Ontario -- CHAR Technologies Thorold Inc. will receive $4.9 million from the Canadian government to help develop a woody-biomass-to-renewable-energy facility. 

This amount is in addition to $1.5 million provided by FederalDev Ontario, bringing the total current federal investment to $6.4 million for this estimated $27.5 million project.

In a press release announcing the planned investment, Natural Resources Canada said, “CHAR’s Thorold facility will demonstrate a first-of-its-kind solution for converting underutilized woody biomass into valuable bioproducts including biocarbon and renewable natural gas (RNG), which may be used to produce hydrogen in the near future. This will help to displace fossil fuel use for heavy emitters such as steel manufacturers, mining operations and pulp mills to support the decarbonization of Canadian industry.”

When commercially operational, the facility will reportedly divert 75,000 tons of woody biomass from being landfilled or burned to simultaneously produce 500,000 gigajoules of RNG and 10,000 ton of biocarbon per year.

“Congratulations to CHAR Technologies on the development of a novel facility that will help to reduce emissions while creating jobs for Canadians,” said Jonathan Wilkinson Minister of Resources. “This facility will help displace fossil fuel combustion while diverting wood waste from being burned or landfilled. This will reduce carbon and methane emissions while contributing to Canada’s ambitious climate goals.”