Amount: $200,000,000

The Sustainable Development Technology Fund (SDTF) is designed to support the development and pre-commercial demonstration of clean-tech solutions. The aim of the program is to increase each projects chances of successfully making it to the marketplace, and help Canadian entrepreneurs carry out their innovation efforts within Canada. The SD Tech Fund is geared towards projects which have an innovative and high potential clean technology at the right stage of development (beyond proof of concept, but pre-commercial) which will bring environmental and economic benefits to Canada. Additionally, projects which need to access funds and guidance in order to bring their technology successfully to market are viable for this fund. The Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) will make up to a 33% contribution over a continuous timeline.

Eligibility Criteria: Sustainable Development Technology Fund (SD Tech Fund)

  • Must be the developer or the manufacturers of the products or processes that:
    • Contribute to clean air, clean water and clean land
    • Address climate change
    • Improve the productivity and the global competitiveness of the Canadian industry

Eligible Costs: Sustainable Development Technology Fund (SD Tech Fund)

  • Late-stage development of clean technology solutions
  • Pre-commercial demonstration of clean technology solutions
  • Goods and services, labours costs, and depreciation expenses

Amount of the Government Grant

Up to 40% of project costs to a maximum $2,000,000 to $4,000,000 in non-repayable funding. Sustainable Development Technology Canada funds, on average, 33% of project costs for a total average contribution of $3,000,000, with funds dispersed in five years or less.

Eligibility Timeline

Applications for funding are accepted on a rolling basis throughout the year.

Review Timeline

SDTC typically holds two rounds of funding each year, initially requesting Statements of Interest (SOI) from applicants. The application process takes about nine months to complete after the receipt of the SOI.

Program’s Budget

Initially, $550 million was provided to SDTC as three separate up-front grants for the SD Tech Fund – $100 million in 2001, $250 million in 2003 and $200 million in 2005.  Subsequent funding for the SD Tech Fund was provided as conditional transfer payments in Budget 2011 ($40 million), Budget 2013 ($325 million) and Budget 2016 ($50 million), bringing the Government of Canada’s total investment to $965 million.  Budget 2017 allocated an additional $400 million, specifically for the re-capitalization of the SD Tech Fund, starting in 2017-18.

According to SDTC reporting, since its launch in 2001, SDTC has invested an estimated $987 million to support 347 cleantech projects through the SD Tech Fund (341 projects, $895 million) and Next Generation Biofuels Fund (6 projects, $92 million), and has leveraged more than $2.7 billion from other project partners.

3 In total, these investments have contributed to 226 patents held by SDTC funded cleantech entrepreneurs.

Selection Criteria

SDTC funds projects that advance technology development to commercialization or accelerate and scale-up cleantech solutions.

 SDTC helps companies advance the technology development and/or demonstration required to secure their first paying customer. This is typically achieved through the provision of both the technical and economic performance of the proposed technology and demonstrating its ability to solve a problem experienced by the customer.

How to Start My Application

Start by verifying your eligibility through our eligibility check form.

Our Focus:

  • Complete introduction form
  • Present power-points to SDTC
  • Submit detailed proposal
  • Submit any additional documents required for review by SDTC and external experts

Examples of the Projects Approved by Sustainable Development Technology Fund (SD Tech Fund):

DarkVision Technologies Inc. will receive $3 million in SDTC funding for the development of oil and gas well imaging technology. Projects are funded through SDTC’s SD Tech Fund. This investment is part of the Government of Canada’s support of clean technology to diversify Canada’s economy, open access to new international markets, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and create well-paying middle-class jobs for Canadians.The Government of Canada has allocated a total of $915 million for the fund to invest in pre-commercial Canadian clean technology projects that have the potential to meet market demand and to achieve Canada’s environmental and economic goals in priority areas. Source