As the federal government’s popular Canada Greener Homes grant program comes to a close, the energy audit industry could crumble with businesses across the country warning of mass layoffs in the months ahead.
The federal government has signalled the end of the program, which provides up to $5,000 toward energy efficiency upgrades such as insulation, windows and heat pumps. New applications are expected to close by the end of March, but an official timeline is unknown.
In the meantime, business is temporarily booming for companies across the country who conduct the required home energy audits, as homeowners try to secure the grant funding before it dries up.
The surge in business is why Stephen Farrell cancelled all vacations for his staff at VerdaTech Energy Management. Currently, the company completes about 600 assessments a month in Alberta and British Columbia, although he predicts that will plunge to one or two per month once the federal program ends. The company also operates in Ontario.
“We’ve just increased the number of energy advisers across Canada dramatically. Millions and millions and millions of dollars was spent training new energy advisors,” he said. “I would suggest we can lose about 70 per cent of them. They’ll go out of the industry.”
“There’s going to be a massive fallout,” he added.
A blower door system is one of several pieces of equipment that energy assessors use to measure the airtightness, pressure, and flow of a home. Industry officials fear the end of the Canada Greener Homes program will be bad for business. (Louise Moquin/Radio-Canada)
His advice to customers is to register for the program and have the initial assessment completed. Still, it’s difficult to provide advice to clients or his own staff, since Farrell said there is no clear timeline from Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), the department which administers the program.
“We have asked and we continue to ask for clarity,” Farrell said. “Please communicate with service organizations clearly in writing what is going on?”
Adding to the confusion is a temporary halt to new applications in Ontario effective Jan. 19 in order to “reconcile all current applicant files.”
Popular program
The grant program was supposed to last seven years, but it has proven so popular that the money is being used up at a faster rate than expected.
The federal grant helped knock $5,000 off the price of installing rooftop solar panels on Nicolas Gautier’s Calgary home. He’s also taking advantage of a related federal program providing an interest-free loan.
“It was sort of a no-brainer for us,” said Gautier of the savings.
Eligible upgrades for the Canada Greener Homes grant include attic, wall and basement insulation. (Louise Moquin/Radio-Canada)
The Greener Homes program came into effect on Dec. 1, 2020, with an end date of March 31, 2027, although it always came with a caveat that applications would be accepted until the money is allocated.
In total, the program is worth $2.6 billion including up to 700,000 grants of up to $5,000 and funding for the recruitment and training of energy advisors. “The Canada Greener Homes Initiative will help homeowners save money, create new jobs across Canada for energy advisors and fight climate change,” NRCan said on its website.
As of last month, the program had received 503,604 applications.
The program requires a homeowner to have an energy audit before and after upgrades are made to the residence.
Industry officials describe how the program was designed, in part, to increase the number of trained energy assessors across the country. These workers will be especially crucial in 2025, when proposed changes to the building code could take effect, potentially requiring energy audits on new homes to meet building performance standards.
Job cuts expected
However, if the Canada Greener Homes grant ends in the next few months, industry officials warn of a mass exodus of assessors.
“There’s literally thousands of people whose jobs are on the line,” said Rachael Murphy, co-owner of Energy Werx Alberta, who estimates 98 per cent of her business is tied to the Canada Greener Homes grant. Statistics Canada does not explicitly track the number of people who work as energy assessors.
Canada Greener Homes grant could end in February or March, experts warn
4 hours ago
Duration 2:14
Interested homeowners should register quickly and complete their first energy assessment, advises Stephen Farrell with VerdaTech Energy Management.
Becoming an energy assessor can take between three and six months for training and writing exams, said Murphy, adding that the job requires about $10,000 worth of equipment. The abrupt end to the program is like pulling the rug out from under people who joined the profession to have a stable career, she said.
“There’s no way we’re going to have the amount of business for the staff that we have now if this program ends, so it’s incredibly concerning,” Murphy added.
New applications still viable, official says
NRCan declined an interview request. In a statement, a department spokesperson said the program will accept new applications until all currently available funds are awarded, and Canadians who have already started an application will remain eligible for assistance.
In addition, the spokesperson said many applications that are already logged in the system will be granted over the next two years or more.
The potential job losses extend to other industries providing the energy upgrades such as window installers, HVAC companies and solar panel providers.
Alberta-based company Zeno Renewables ihas grown from about 20 staff to about 200 over the last four years, but the end of the federal grant program means the company expects sales to drop by as much as 40 per cent this year compared to 2023.
“The last thing we want to do is lay people off, but that’s an inevitable conversation,” said Gursh Bal, the solar energy company’s co-CEO. “2024 is going to be a rough year.”
He too is urging the federal government to provide a clear answer on the fate of the grant funding program, so there is some level of certainty on what happens next instead of relying on rumours and hearsay.
CALGARY – TC Energy Corp. has lowered the estimated cost of its Southeast Gateway pipeline project in Mexico.
It says it now expects the project to cost between US$3.9 billion and US$4.1 billion compared with its original estimate of US$4.5 billion.
The change came as the company reported a third-quarter profit attributable to common shareholders of C$1.46 billion or $1.40 per share compared with a loss of C$197 million or 19 cents per share in the same quarter last year.
Revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 30 totalled C$4.08 billion, up from C$3.94 billion in the third quarter of 2023.
TC Energy says its comparable earnings for its latest quarter amounted to C$1.03 per share compared with C$1.00 per share a year earlier.
The average analyst estimate had been for a profit of 95 cents per share, according to LSEG Data & Analytics.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
BCE Inc. reported a loss in its latest quarter as it recorded $2.11 billion in asset impairment charges, mainly related to Bell Media’s TV and radio properties.
The company says its net loss attributable to common shareholders amounted to $1.24 billion or $1.36 per share for the quarter ended Sept. 30 compared with a profit of $640 million or 70 cents per share a year earlier.
On an adjusted basis, BCE says it earned 75 cents per share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 81 cents per share in the same quarter last year.
“Bell’s results for the third quarter demonstrate that we are disciplined in our pursuit of profitable growth in an intensely competitive environment,” BCE chief executive Mirko Bibic said in a statement.
“Our focus this quarter, and throughout 2024, has been to attract higher-margin subscribers and reduce costs to help offset short-term revenue impacts from sustained competitive pricing pressures, slow economic growth and a media advertising market that is in transition.”
Operating revenue for the quarter totalled $5.97 billion, down from $6.08 billion in its third quarter of 2023.
BCE also said it now expects its revenue for 2024 to fall about 1.5 per cent compared with earlier guidance for an increase of zero to four per cent.
The company says the change comes as it faces lower-than-anticipated wireless product revenue and sustained pressure on wireless prices.
BCE added 33,111 net postpaid mobile phone subscribers, down 76.8 per cent from the same period last year, which was the company’s second-best performance on the metric since 2010.
It says the drop was driven by higher customer churn — a measure of subscribers who cancelled their service — amid greater competitive activity and promotional offer intensity. BCE’s monthly churn rate for the category was 1.28 per cent, up from 1.1 per cent during its previous third quarter.
The company also saw 11.6 per cent fewer gross subscriber activations “due to more targeted promotional offers and mobile device discounting compared to last year.”
Bell’s wireless mobile phone average revenue per user was $58.26, down 3.4 per cent from $60.28 in the third quarter of the prior year.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
TORONTO – Canada Goose Holdings Inc. trimmed its financial guidance as it reported its second-quarter revenue fell compared with a year ago.
The luxury clothing company says revenue for the quarter ended Sept. 29 totalled $267.8 million, down from $281.1 million in the same quarter last year.
Net income attributable to shareholders amounted to $5.4 million or six cents per diluted share, up from $3.9 million or four cents per diluted share a year earlier.
On an adjusted basis, Canada Goose says it earned five cents per diluted share in its latest quarter compared with an adjusted profit of 16 cents per diluted share a year earlier.
In its outlook, Canada Goose says it now expects total revenue for its full financial year to show a low-single-digit percentage decrease to low-single-digit percentage increase compared with earlier guidance for a low-single-digit increase.
It also says it now expects its adjusted net income per diluted share to show a mid-single-digit percentage increase compared with earlier guidance for a percentage increase in the mid-teens.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.
