Technological innovation at the heart of energy efficiency
The Government of Québec has developed a new strategy to reduce our dependency on fossil fuels and to put Québec in the forefront of energy efficiency, renewable energy, mass transit and new technologies for protecting the environment. Presented in the Stratégie énergétique du Québec 2006-2015, the new plan calls for energy innovation, as well as research and development in the energy sector.
The Department has been mandated to draft a comprehensive plan for energy efficiency and new energy technologies. Actions to be pursued for all forms of energy are part of that plan.
- The Department has also established a program to promote energy efficiency (PPEE). It offers financing for innovative projects at various stages of development in order to encourage the creation of new technologies in energy efficiency and energy production.
- In the summer of 2008, the Programme de démonstration des technologies vertes (Technoclimat®) was launched, a green technologies demonstration program. The objective of the program is to finance projects that demonstrate innovative technologies and procedures that have strong potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Québec.
Renewable Sources of Energy
Many sources of energy are renewable. For an energy source to be renewable, it must be naturally regenerated or renewed within a relatively short cycle in human terms, i.e. a period of 20 to 50 years. These sources of energy include :
- Solar energy
- Geothermal energy
- Bioenergy
- Wind energy
- Wave power
- Hydrogen
- Tidal energy
