Finance Committee on Feb. 12th, 2026

[The Chair, Liberal, Karina Gould]

Thank you, Ms. Oliver.

[Jessica Oliver]

—and 95% of them did not offer those plans.

[The Chair, Liberal, Karina Gould]

We're going to have to end it there.

Thank you very much, Mr. MacDonald.

That concludes the first hour of our meeting today.

On behalf of the committee, I would like to thank all of our witnesses, both in person and online.

We will now briefly suspend as we change over for the next part of our meeting.

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Liberal, Karina Gould]

I call the meeting back to order.

Colleagues, we are going to get started with our second hour.

I would like to take a moment to welcome our witnesses for this hour.

We have Mr. Ehren Cory, the chief executive officer of the Canada Infrastructure Bank. He is joined by Mr. Frédéric Duguay, the general counsel and corporate secretary of the CIB.

I would like to make a few brief comments for the benefit of our new witnesses.

Please wait until I recognize you by name before speaking. For those participating by video conference....

Actually, it's just Monsieur Garon. You know what to do, so that's fine.

This is a reminder that all comments should be addressed through the chair.

Mr. Cory, you have five minutes for opening remarks. Please go ahead.

[Ehren Cory, Chief Executive Officer, Canada Infrastructure Bank]

Good morning, Chair and honourable members. Thank you for the invitation to address the committee in relation to your study of Bill C-15.

As the chair mentioned, I'm joined by our general counsel and corporate secretary, Frédéric Duguay.

We welcome the opportunity to speak to you about the proposal in budget 2025 to increase the Canada Infrastructure Bank's capital from $35 billion to $45 billion.

As many members of this committee know, the CIB was created to help get infrastructure projects unstuck. Through our flexible financing, we address risk and affordability gaps that get in the way of important projects moving forward. By crowding in private financing and coordinating with government granting programs, we make public dollars go further and deliver more of the infrastructure Canada needs to grow.

With $28 billion of our $35 billion initial appropriation either committed under binding financing agreements or allocated to ongoing public energy procurement, the success of the CIB to invest in infrastructure products across the country means it is starting to reach financial constraints. This additional allocation, therefore, is very much welcome and necessary. It will allow us to continue on our ambitious program of investments in projects that deliver benefits to Canadians.

Before we get into the questions, let me take a step back and share a bit of background on the CIB and our progress for committee members.

Since I joined the CIB in 2020, we have consistently made 20 to 30 investments annually—that's $3 billion to $4 billion of CIB money invested every year—and we expect this pace to increase given the critical importance of infrastructure to Canada's economic future.

I am proud to report that as of today, we have made 108 loans to projects, with a total project value of over $55 billion. We have projects in every province and territory. Our pipeline of future projects is healthy. More than 80% of our projects are currently in construction, supporting more than 300,000 Canadian jobs and other downstream domestic benefits for Canadian companies, workers and supply chains. Eleven of these projects are completed. This number is growing each quarter.

Different from a grant, the CIB makes loans and investments that are repaid with interest. Since July 2024, we have collected sufficient revenue to cover 100% of our operating costs. We are now a self-sustaining organization.

In short, the CIB is a model that is working and delivering tangible benefits for Canadians, getting greenfield infrastructure built with minimal cost to taxpayers.

Our projects range from a rail terminal in Alberta's industrial heartland to help move goods to Canada's west coast and onward to international markets; to a wind turbine and energy storage system in Nunavut to get an island community less reliant on diesel; to a biomass plant in a remote first nation community in northern Quebec to ensure long-term energy security and economic development. For each project we finance, we look at the public benefits this infrastructure delivers to Canadians—growing the economy, decarbonizing key sectors, strengthening and diversifying trade corridors, building out the electricity grid and energy supply, and closing the indigenous infrastructure gap. These impact measures form the core of our investment decisions.

This brings me back to budget 2025 and the proposal to increase the allocation by $10 billion. As I mentioned off the top, the CIB has almost $28 billion of its $35 billion allocated. If I could just describe that for a second, this represents $18 billion in legally binding credit agreements with project proponents and projects that are in construction, and an additional $10 billion in CIB term sheets with provinces and provincial utilities to support their ongoing renewable energy procurements. This pace of investments was confirmed by the PBO in their 2025 report, which concluded that the CIB is on track to reach $37 billion in financial closes by 2029-30.

Beyond our current mandate, budget 2025 asks the CIB to do even more to address the country's infrastructure gaps.

The additional budget allocation is required for us to deliver on this expanded role.

For example, the CIB was directed to consider investments in any project referred to the Major Projects Office. As committee members will understand, these are large, complex projects that will likely require financing from multiple public and private sources to advance. Opening up access to financing from the CIB is just a natural, logical move to advancing these major projects.

We have also been asked to consider investments in AI and data centres. This sector has significant infrastructure needs to support our long-term competitiveness and growth. We have also been asked to continue and accelerate our investments in indigenous communities.

[The Chair, Liberal, Karina Gould]

Mr. Cory, could you briefly wrap up, please?

[Ehren Cory]

I shall.

To date, we have 33 projects being financed that are benefiting first nations, Inuit and Métis communities. Last year we surpassed our initial $1-billion goal, and the budget increases this target to $3 billion.

Thank you, Chair.

I welcome your questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Karina Gould]

Excellent. Thank you, Mr. Cory.

We will begin now with Mr. McLean for six minutes.

[Greg McLean, Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Mr. Cory, welcome. Thank you for being here.

I take note of your comments that you've invested about $18 billion—according to your website, $17.9 billion—and you have terms out for potentially another $10 billion. Out of a $35-billion allocation, you've allocated $18 billion and you might allocate $10 billion more, yet the government has given you $10 billion more in this allocation for your needs or your wants down the road here about what you want to do to move forward an agenda that, can we say, might not be working.

I'll ask you some questions about that, but first, is the $18 billion reflected anywhere in the government's deficit?

[Ehren Cory]

The way the CIB works, as the member points out, is that the CIB receives the allocation or appropriation from government. As we make loans, we draw on our appropriation and lend that money to borrowers. Then we get paid back over time. The long-term fiscal impact of this should be, in our modelling, positive for the country.

[Greg McLean, Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Okay. Thank you.

Let me quickly move there. If you were to do an audit of your investments right now, of the $18 billion you've put out, would you have $18 billion of assets if they were accounted for on an evaluation basis, at this point in time?

[Ehren Cory]

It's an interesting question. In our current modelling, when you net three things—investments minus all of our operating costs historically to date, minus any losses on loans for projects that have had challenges or risk, plus the interest we've currently accrued, which is $18 billion, using round numbers—it would be something in the range, I believe, of $17.8 billion. That's slightly below.

When you forecast the interest to be earned from all the existing loans, though, we are growing that portfolio. Our financial audit statements would show that, over time, we will be positive to the fiscal plan.

[Greg McLean, Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Let me ask about something. Last week the government gave you another $1.5 billion. I presume that's on top of the $10 billion for your electrification network strategy. You've already been involved heavily in electrification through electric school buses, which we call zero-emission buses.

Looking at your investments, particularly with the Lion Electric Company in Quebec, it seems that they have been an abject failure because the company has gone bankrupt. The $50 million from the strategic investment fund went into Lion Electric, along with $140 million from the Government of Quebec. The company quickly did a pump and dump, and the president took out $33 million and put it in his own pocket just before the company went bankrupt.

To suggest that this is a success as far as your electric vehicle strategy goes—the electric bus strategy—would be a stretch. Would you say that?

[Ehren Cory]

Madam Chair, there are two things. I'll talk about electric vehicle charging networks, and then I'll discuss fleets, if I may.

On charging, just to clarify, the announcement in the auto strategy that came out last week increased the government's target for us to invest up to $1.5 billion in electric vehicle charging. That is not new money. That is of our $45 billion as requested in the budget. That is the government as a shareholder saying that, of our $45-billion portfolio, they expect, in the long term, $1.5 billion of that to be in electric vehicle chargers. Previously, that target was lower. They're just increasing that target from $500 million to $1.5 billion.

We're a portfolio that's investing in sectors. Therefore, the government's job is to tell us where we should prioritize and how to allocate that portfolio in trade, energy or EV charging. That's what the EV charging money is for.

[Greg McLean, Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

No, the question is, effectively, has this been a success, as far as what you've shown in zero...electric buses goes?

[Ehren Cory]

On fleets, the question conflates two things. Just to be clear, we have no loans to Lion Electric or no investments in them. Our loans are to the owners and operators of electric fleets—municipalities, municipal transit corporations, private school bus operators, for example—so that they can accelerate their transition from diesel to non-emitting fleets.

This program has been taken up by, as I said, municipal fleet operators and school bus operators across the country. Over 5,000 buses are under procurement and will be on the road. We think it's a success. Those buses are being bought from a range of companies, and many are Canadian. They are creating a supply chain and jobs. Yes, we think the program is a success.

[Greg McLean, Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Thank you.

Let me point out that the Lion Electric vehicles were pulled off the road because they were catching fire. The last thing I want to put my kids on when I send them to school is a bus that catches fire. Would you agree?

[Ehren Cory]

Our job is to support fleet operators, municipal companies and school bus operators in making their fleet choices. We're a lender to their projects, but our job is to help them accelerate fleet investment and transition.

[Greg McLean, Conservative, Calgary Centre, AB]

Yes, thank you. I noticed you did invest in a fleet operator called Highland Electric Fleets, which is based in Beverly, Massachusetts. There was $50 million from the Canada Infrastructure Bank that went to a U.S. company this past year, so effectively, we're subsidizing a U.S. arranger to buy buses for fleets, potentially in Canada or potentially elsewhere.

Do you have any comments—

[The Chair, Liberal, Karina Gould]

Thank you, Mr. McLean. That concludes your time.

We will continue now with Mr. MacDonald for six minutes.

[Kent MacDonald, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

Thank you, Madam Chair.

Thank you, Mr. Cory and Mr. Duguay, for attending today.

I was reading your bio before I came here today. You have a lot of years of experience at the Canada Infrastructure Bank. You've been there since 2020. Can you speak to what you have learned from those experiences, the lessons learned, over the years?

[Ehren Cory]

I just passed my five-year anniversary, and I believe Frédéric is at seven.

The CIB was launched.... Our first employee was hired in 2018, so we're still a relatively young organization. We've learned a lot along the way. I'll tell you three things that I think have made a big difference for us in our journey.

First, we have learned the power of collaborating with the provinces, territories and municipalities. Canada is a vast country with a sparse population. The infrastructure needs across our country are varied. They're not the same in B.C. as they are in northern Quebec or the Northwest Territories. Working with local owners of infrastructure.... Lots of the infrastructure in our country is owned by the provinces, municipalities and territories, including first nations, Métis and Inuit governments. That's lesson number one. If you look at all of our big successes, they've come when we've worked really closely with others. That also includes working really closely with federal counterparts to make sure we're aligned to the policy goals of the shareholder.

The second thing we've learned is that, with our investments, we can help solve two of the main reasons infrastructure projects get stalled in this country. There are many reasons that infrastructure projects get stalled, but there are two that we can really address. One is the affordability of projects. Infrastructure projects often last 50, 75 or 100 years. There are huge upfront costs to building them. We can help to smooth that out by managing them and easing the burden on today's ratepayers or users of the infrastructure.

The other way is in helping to share the risk that comes with projects. Oftentimes, you're building something for a long-term future. You're building a port for growth in traffic from now until 2050. The world is an uncertain place and it's hard to know how much traffic is going to grow. The CIB can help share in that risk. We can provide financing that says they will pay us back as the traffic ramps up or as the demand grows.

That's the kind of financing that a typical bank, which isn't a Crown like us with a long-term view, couldn't take. That idea of affordability, managing the costs and risk sharing are the lessons we've learned. We look at every investment through those lenses. How can our money help manage costs and manage risk of the project?

Those are two, at least, that I'll share with you.

[Kent MacDonald, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

Thank you.

We heard from my colleague across the way, and he was trying to identify a black sheep.

Can you speak to the golden child of your program?

[Ehren Cory]

Indeed. That question is kind of saying to pick your favourite child, so I don't know. We like all of our projects, but I'll tell you about two.

The first project the CIB invested in is the REM, the new transit line in Montreal. I mention this one only because it has many of the hallmarks I mentioned. It's a collaboration, obviously, across levels of government and with the private sector, including an institutional investor, in this case, the Caisse de dépôt. It's a project that is now partially in service. Two of the three lines are operating. People are riding the transit. It is delivering real benefits, so you can see the other side of it. It's transforming housing availability, commutability and livability in the city of Montreal in really meaningful ways. That is one which I continue to point at.

A more recent one would be our intertie project, which is a new transmission line between Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. The reason I would pick this one is that it has, again, all the hallmarks of a great project. The project is owned, actually, by a consortium, including the power utility, Nova Scotia Power and the CIB as an equity investor. The Mi’kmaq first nations of both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are also owners of the project.

Together, from the start, they're designing where the line will go and how it will get built, creating jobs, economic development and, eventually, ownership of the line. All of the indigenous communities of both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick are going to own this line alongside us. It's going to connect the grids, create more reliability, allow us to grow electricity supply and move towards decarbonizing the energy supply in both Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

Those are two.

[Kent MacDonald, Liberal, Cardigan, PE]

I'm really pleased you identified that one from Atlantic Canada, because I was probably going to bring it up. Thank you for that.

You said in your opening remarks that you're in a position where you're self-sufficient today.

Can you tell Canadians, the people listening at home, how the Canada Infrastructure Bank's revenues and its requirements for government appropriations work and how you're covering your costs?