Von der Leyen, Trudeau tout ‘green alliance’ before Biden visits

OTTAWA — Europe and Canada are flirting with the idea of a new “green alliance.”

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at an event with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau stressed the importance of sourcing raw materials from “trusted partners” in an era of supply chain disruption.

The declaration highlights a new play from Brussels to use raw materials to forge stronger transatlantic ties.

“It's to create good and well paying jobs, to promote growth, to boost our energy and climate cooperation across the board,” von der Leyen told reporters in Kingston, Ontario on Tuesday.

“China produces 98 percent of Europe’s supplies of rare earths,” she said. “Europe needs to de-risk this dependency.”

Canada is a minerals-rich country and major global producer of potash, palladium, niobium and uranium. The slow pace of regulatory hurdles, historically, hasn’t been a selling point for investors to bankroll Canadian projects.

Talks are also underway for a memorandum of understanding on hydrogen. Von der Leyen said Europe is facing a time crunch in its bid to import 10 million tons of the fuel by 2030.

Interest in sourcing hydrogen from Canada follows an agreement with Germany last year to begin exporting the fuel in 2025. Trudeau has previously said the ambitious goal is "doable,” despite the lack of export facilities in Atlantic Canada.

The green deal pledge comes on the eve of von der Leyen’s arrival in Washington to meet with President Joe Biden. There, her tall task will be to convince Biden to extend the Inflation Reduction Act’s (IRA) tax breaks to the European Union’s electric vehicle industry.

Von der Leyen’s visit is her first to Canada since her election as president in 2019. Her five-year term will end next year with Europe’s elections. Biden, in turn, is expected to visit Canada later this month for his first in-person visit since taking office.

More details about the EU-Canada green alliance are expected later this year at the High Level Dialogue on Climate.

Partnering with Canada, a beneficiary of the IRA’s North American content rules for EVs, is one step to advance trade links as wealthy countries look to decarbonize and develop industries to displace reliance on Russia and China.

The impact of the IRA has also been the subject of study by a parliamentary committee in Ottawa where concerns about its massive $369-billion package for clean tech has fueled concerns about protectionism and fears that investments will be pulled away from western allies.