EDC launches program to guarantee bank loans to companies in carbon intensive sectors

(Globe & Mail, Toronto, 2 May 2022) Export Development Canada has agreed to partly guarantee $1-billion of loans which the Bank of Montreal plans to make to companies in carbon-intensive industries in order to help them lower their emissions, reducing the risks of the bank’s foray into funding an urgent but uncertain energy transition. The three-year guarantee agreement will provide financing for medium-to-large-sized Canadian companies, rather than the largest corporate entities, which have easier access to capital. EDC will guarantee up to half of BMO’s term loans to a maximum of US$60-million per borrower for up to seven years. It is an early result of a federal effort to help reduce the risks of funding investments in early-stage technologies that could be crucial to cutting greenhouse-gas emissions, such as carbon capture or hydrogen fuel.