I'll talk about the sector's competitiveness. You previously appeared when we were studying the Inflation Reduction Act. The U.S. is currently committing about $6 billion for what they say are 33 manufacturing projects for steel and aluminum with the aim of making the U.S. “one of the first nations in the world to convert clean hydrogen into clean steel, bolstering the U.S. steel industry's competitiveness as the world's cleanest major steel producer.” This is according to a quote from President Biden's release.
I'm sure you will agree that it's tough to compete when you're seeing investments such as $6 billion for 33 new manufacturing facilities. In your testimony at our last session on the IRA, you mentioned, to state the obvious, that the IRA takes an enabling approach to the climate change challenge. A carbon price is not envisioned.
In contrast, over the next eight years, the Canadian steel industry faces significant increases in carbon costs, with carbon pricing rising to $170 a tonne by 2030. How does that impact the sector's competitiveness? When you see this IRA and the huge investments taking place in the United States and we have a taxation policy that's not in alignment with the United States, we're almost tying the hands of the sector and putting one hand behind your back. How can Canadian steel producers compete?