Canada's New Clean Electricity Regulations

Introduction

On Dec. 18, 2024, the finalized Clean Energy Regulations (the Regulation) were published in the Canada Gazette, Part II. Aligning with the release of the final version of the Regulation, the Government of Canada published Powering Canada's Future: A Clean Electricity Strategy (the Electricity Strategy) on Dec. 17, 2024, which notes that the Regulation is one of the measures that the federal government has taken to help build a "clean, reliable, and affordable electricity sector." As explained in the Regulatory Impact Analysis Statement of the Regulation, reducing greenhouse gas emissions is an important step in the fight against climate change; to aid in this fight, the Government of Canada, along with many other governments around the world, have committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050. This goal is important when noting that the demand for electricity is growing at a rapid pace, as such, a net-zero economy will require electricity emissions