By Laura Cameron
Last month’s provincial budget included $3.7 billion in capital investments for building much-needed infrastructure and stimulating economic development to combat the impacts of U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs. This big infrastructure spending is an opportunity to build more resilient housing and public buildings to insulate Manitobans from the worsening impacts of climate change, while growing low-carbon industries that can accelerate our transition away from fossil fuels.
However, this opportunity will be missed if spending does not align with last year’s provincial Affordable Energy Plan, which is largely absent from the budget. The Affordable Energy Plan outlines the government’s approach to managing the energy transition by expanding the supply of clean electricity while curbing demand growth. The budget makes no mention of key elements of this plan such as heat pumps, clean heat, solar, geothermal, or building retrofits.
There are many ways the government could sync up its stimulus spending and clean energy ambitions.
In its energy plan, Manitoba commits to improving building codes to ensure buildings are more energy efficient, thus reducing bills for consumers. New publicly funded buildings — including the schools, hospital additions, care homes, and housing funded in this budget — should uphold this commitment by meeting the highest effciency standard. The dormant Manitoba Green Buildings procurement policy could be resurrected to standardize this approach.
The Affordable Energy Plan also commits to expanding clean heat such as electric heat pumps and district geothermal systems. New provincially funded infrastructure using clean heat technologies could help scale up a provincial geothermal industry, workforce, and potential public utility. Geothermal is well-proven — heating Winnipeg buildings such as Manitoba Hydro’s head office, the Forks Market, Seasons of Tuxedo Shopping Centre, and IKEA — but its vast potential in Manitoba remains largely untapped.
The budget does include $300 million for the Indigenous Loan Guarantee to support Indigenous-owned, utility-scale wind power projects, and $881 million for hydro-electric refurbishment and infrastructure, which are welcome steps towards building out the clean electricity grid with First Nations leadership. These investments in renewable energy partnerships need to be scaled up and paired with investments in energy storage.
The forthcoming economic development strategy and investment in workforce development and training outlined in the budget should also support an affordable, fossil fuel-free future and ensure we have the workers to get there. Beyond an energy strategy, the province needs an economywide climate plan to help guide economic development and training. There is no shortage of low carbon domestic growth industries and green jobs that could be stimulated by public investment geared at decarbonizing our society while protecting those most vulnerable.
On the other hand, if the capital investments in this budget proceed without climate resilience and emissions reductions in mind, it will cost Manitobans more in the long run through the escalating costs of climate change impacts like fires and floods, as well as increasingly volatile fossil fuel prices. Building without energy efficiency would also put further pressure on growing peak power demand, requiring the province to invest more in power generation.
Last month, Manitoba Hydro announced it is considering building a $1.36 billion new electricity generating station, potentially fuelled by natural gas, to meet the growing demand for electricity at peak times. Building new fossil fuel energy infrastructure would move the province in the opposite direction of its affordable energy plan and its commitments to a net-zero electricity grid by 2035, including plans to phase out the existing gas power plant in Brandon.
Beyond this recent announcement from Hydro, the province has shown other concerning support for expanding fossil fuel production. Since November, the government has approved 55 new oil well licences.
If we want to truly increase affordability and get off the roller coaster of oil and gas prices — and if we want to maximize the days we can play outside without wheezing from wildfire smoke or travel on ice roads without risking lives and livelihoods — we need to transition off of fossil fuels as quickly as possible.
With Trump’s tariffs causing a paradigm shift in Manitoba’s and Canada’s economies, we have an opportunity to reorient towards domestic, low-carbon industries that can keep money and jobs in the province and address economic inequities.
Stimulus spending packages implemented in moments of economic crisis should provide renewed foundations for the next generation of investment. Manitoba can do just that by orienting its investments towards a truly affordable and just clean energy future.
Originally published in the Winnipeg free Press on April 3, 2025.