Good afternoon.
My name is Ivette Vera-Perez. I am the president and CEO of the Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association, CHFCA, with over 160 members at all stages of the hydrogen supply chain. Our members export clean technologies to over 42 countries that account for 65% of the world population.
According to a recent report by EY, the annual Canadian hydrogen market could reach $100 billion and create 350,000 jobs by 2050. Recognizing this potential and the fact that we cannot get to net zero without hydrogen, CHFCA members recently visited Ottawa, where we made a number of recommendations that I bring to you today.
Canada must keep up with the ambition and activity in jurisdictions across the globe. Countries like Germany, China and the U.S. have made massive strides in scaling up the industry. The Inflation Reduction Act in the U.S. is one example. Its simplicity and the amount offered for hydrogen outpace Canada. We must operate in a global context when developing funding and policy so that we don't see our projects and companies migrate to other jurisdictions.
The Canadian 2020 hydrogen strategy committed to develop 30 hubs by 2030. Since then, there has been much discussion about the Canadian hydrogen sector, but not significant action at the federal level. Canada's commitments for the sector continue to increase, including the agreement to export clean hydrogen by 2025, but we're far behind in meeting this target. Deployment of the hydrogen strategy must be appropriately resourced to accelerate its implementation.
Programs like the strategic innovation fund and the clean fuels fund are great signals of the ambition the government has for Canadian clean-tech companies and for the industry, but the resource-intensive application process and the long wait times are a deterrent for project proponents. We must commit to a reasonable turnaround time for SIF, CFF, CIB and any other future funding.
Finally, federal strategies and policies should build on and enable each other, but too often they work at cross-purposes. This is costly, inefficient and ineffective. We recommend that all proposed federal strategies and policies undergo an assessment of how they support the government's vision. For example, Canada has declared a goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. Hydrogen has a key role to play in this respect. We must put forth the right set of enabling policies that jointly work to attain these goals.
In closing, Canada has always been at the forefront of the global hydrogen industry, but with the rapid development of the sector and our lack of action at home, Canada is falling behind. We must invest smartly, heavily and rapidly to reclaim our leadership position in the hydrogen sector.
Thank you very much. I look forward to your questions.