CONTENTS
Standing Committee on The
Economy
Saskatchewan
Research Council Vote 35
Innovation
Saskatchewan Vote 84
Trade
and Export Development Vote 90
THIRTIETH
LEGISLATURE
of
the
Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
STANDING
COMMITTEE ON
Hansard Verbatim Report
No.
13 — Wednesday, April 15, 2026
Chair
D. Harrison: — Welcome, and I’m Daryl Harrison. I’m
the Chair of the Economy committee. And with us today we have Don McBean
chitting in for Meara Conway; we have Kim Breckner chitting in for Tajinder
Grewal; Racquel Hilbert; Brittney Senger is chitting in for Sally Housser;
Kevin Kasun; and Megan Patterson is chitting in for Kevin Weedmark.
General Revenue Fund
Saskatchewan Research Council
Vote 35
Subvote (SR01)
Chair
D. Harrison: — Our first item of business today will
be the consideration of the 2026‑2027 estimates for Saskatchewan Research
Council. We will begin with consideration of vote 35, Saskatchewan Research
Council, subvote (SR01).
Minister Kaeding is here with his
officials. And I would ask that officials state their names before speaking and
please do not touch the microphones. The Hansard operator will turn your
microphone on when you are speaking to the committee.
Minister, please introduce your
officials and make your opening remarks.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good afternoon. It’s a pleasure to appear before the
committee of estimates regarding the Saskatchewan Research Council, which we
will call SRC [Saskatchewan Research Council] from now on.
With me today are SRC’s president and
CEO [chief executive officer], Mike Crabtree; SRC’s chief operating officer,
Ryan Hill; and SRC’s vice-president of finance, Jocelyn Allard; and Michelle
Lang, our chief of staff; and Arlie Matisho, our ministerial assistant.
For nearly 80 years, SRC has proudly
delivered innovative science solutions with unparalleled service to clients
that grow and strengthen Saskatchewan’s economy. Founded in 1947 by the
province of Saskatchewan as a provincial treasury board Crown corp, SRC was
initially established to support scientific research and economic development
in the province.
In 1954, SRC’s mandate expanded to
include independent research activities with a focus in applied research for
the provincial government and the private sector. SRC opened its laboratories
in 1958 and then expanded its facilities further in 1963, enabling more
in-house applied research and scientific work.
SRC’s mandate has always been fairly
broad, which affords SRC the opportunity to both react to the needs of industry
as well as progress new, innovative ideas forward for the province.
Today SRC is one of Canada’s leading
providers of applied research, development, and demonstration and technology
commercialization. SRC is a market-driven company that sells services and
products to companies in Saskatchewan and around the world.
By investing in new technologies and
world-class researchers, SRC continues to expand its capabilities, moving the
organization to the forefront of research, development, and demonstration, and
is meeting the growing demands of Saskatchewan’s industries.
Home to several state-of-the-art
laboratories, SRC offers reliable, professional commercial lab services, plus a
wide range of dedicated services that are focused on contract research,
development, and demonstration projects, as well as pilot plants that offer
clients the opportunity to test new technologies and processes.
Since its inception, SRC has been part
of many important firsts for the province that have brought significant
benefits to the Saskatchewan economy. In the 1970s SRC was a leader in
energy-efficient housing research, and its work formed the basis for the
development of the R‑2000 standard for energy-efficient homes. In the
1980s SRC played a large role assisting the Saskatchewan oil and gas industry
by enabling the implementation of horizontal wells and the use of carbon
dioxide for enhanced oil recovery.
In 1981 SRC began overseeing the
operations of the Slowpoke II nuclear research reactor, supporting analytical
testing and scientific studies. SRC operated this nuclear research reactor for
38 years before shutting down and decommissioning the reactor in 2019.
Throughout its operation at SRC, the research reactor surpassed 20,000 hours of
operation and conducted more than 240,000 analytical tests.
SRC’s geoanalytical laboratories secure
diamond facility, established in the early 2000s, is the largest such facility
in the world. And not only does it offer diamond services, but it also offers
geochemical and mineralogical analysis for base metals, gold, lithium, uranium,
potash, and rare earth elements. SRC is also home to the world’s largest
uranium and potash lab, staffed by world-class scientists, engineers,
researchers, and technologists. So these examples really paint a small picture
of the important work that SRC has done over its 79‑year history and the
positive impacts that have followed.
So speaking of impacts, SRC has been
measuring its economic impact within the province for well over two decades
now. SRC’s ’24‑25 economic impact assessment shows approximately $565 million
in direct economic benefits to the province with about 1,447 jobs created or
maintained in Saskatchewan that are valued at an additional $92 million.
So that means for every dollar invested
in the SRC by the provincial government, a 28 times return was achieved in ’24‑25.
So since 2003, when SRC began measuring its economic impact, SRC has
contributed roughly $16.2 billion in combined economic and employment
impacts in Saskatchewan. So these impressive figures really underscore SRC’s
pivotal role in fostering innovation across Saskatchewan’s industry and driving
economic growth within the province.
One of the impacts that SRC is most
proud of from the ’24‑25 fiscal year is one that is already starting to
make significant social impacts. In January of 2025 SRC launched its Indigenous
action plan, which is based on four pillars: leadership, employment, business
development, and community relationships.
SRC’s plan is built in alignment with
the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Call to Action 92. The plan
has seen the beginnings of two new programs at SRC under the employment pillar
— an Indigenous workforce program and an Indigenous summer student program. Together
these programs will help SRC increase recruitment and the hiring of Indigenous
peoples by collaborating with Indigenous educational institutions and training
entities to develop strategies for the retention and the advancement of
Indigenous employees.
SRC is very proud to welcome new a
cohort of students into its Indigenous summer student program within the next
month or two. The long-term goal for this workforce pillar is to have
Indigenous people represented across all job categories at SRC, supporting
career development and succession planning for Indigenous employees, as well as
targeted recruitment efforts and training to develop an Indigenous talent
pipeline.
Since launching this plan last year SRC
has already achieved some incredible milestones, including the formation of an
Indigenous advisory committee and holding the committee’s inaugural meeting in
the past year. Also this past year SRC rolled out a council-wide Indigenous
cultural training program called Our Shared History. And SRC’s leadership team
and board members also participated in this training.
So I mentioned before how SRC is on the
leading edge of bringing firsts to Saskatchewan. Certainly now I’d like to
shift gears to highlight a couple of projects that SRC is currently leading in
Saskatchewan. The first very high-profile project that has already garnered
significant national and international attention is SRC’s rare earth processing
facility.
For almost 20 years SRC has been
investigating and developing the technology and intellectual property to
process minerals containing rare earth elements, also known as REEs, as well as
the technology that’s required to separate individual REEs and to eventually
produce rare earth metals. REEs are a group of 17 metallic elements found on
the periodic table. And despite their name, REEs are actually relatively
abundant in the ground but are often difficult to extract and to separate from
each other and from other minerals.
The applications of REEs are vast. So if
we didn’t have REEs, we would not have a lot of technology that we actually use
every day including cell phones, rechargeable batteries, LED [light-emitting
diode] lights, lasers, fluorescent lighting, HVAC [heating, ventilating, and
air conditioning] systems, elevators, and robotics.
Currently 95 per cent of the global REE
sector is dominated by China, and that is why, in 2020, the Government of
Saskatchewan commissioned SRC to begin constructing a North American first rare
earth processing facility. So this facility is now set to be the first fully
integrated, commercial minerals-to-metals facility in North America with
hydrometallurgy separation and metal smelting stages. The objective of this
facility is really to stimulate the REE resource sector in Saskatchewan and
across Canada.
So the facility is meant to provide the
mid-stage supply chain that’s needed to generate industry investment and
growth. That is something that we are already seeing happen. Once complete,
SRC’s facility will take rare earth minerals and produce rare earth metals,
specifically neodymium-praseodymium metals, known as NdPr. NdPr is a common
ingredient in permanent magnets that are used in electric vehicles and other
green technologies such as wind turbines.
SRC’s facility can be broken down into
three stages. So the first stage of the facility is a monazite processing unit.
And this unit processes the mineral monazite and then creates a mixed rare
earth chloride liquid that contains all 17 REEs, but is free from all other
minerals or impurities.
The second stage of the facility is a
solvent extraction unit. And this is where in-house developed technology will
separate the 17 rare earths from one another, creating individual rare earth
oxides. And this part of the facility, when complete, is going to house more
than 400 solid extraction cells and these truly will be the workhorse of the
facility. And they’re also a technology that SRC and the Government of
Saskatchewan is extremely proud of.
In 2022, SRC designed and manufactured
proprietary solvent extraction cells in-house for the facility. And this means
that Saskatchewan is now really the only one of a handful of jurisdictions in
the world that has this capability. So one that is extremely integral to
completing the rare earth supply chain.
So moving back to the various facility
stages. The individually separated REE oxides are then fed into the third
stage: a metal smelting unit where a semi-automated process converts these
oxides into REE metals. And these metals are then going to be sold on the open
market to permanent magnet manufacturers.
So once fully operational in 2027, SRC’s
facility will be able to process up to 3 000 tonnes of monazite and produce
about 400 tonnes of NdPr metal. So that’s enough NdPr to power half a million
electric vehicles.
[16:00]
In 2024, SRC’s metal smelting unit began
producing rare earth metals at commercial scale, making Saskatchewan and Canada
the first jurisdiction outside of China to achieve this milestone. SRC’s
facility will fulfill a significant part of the province’s critical minerals
strategy in the 2030 growth plan, which aims to grow and establish an REE hub
in Saskatchewan.
So SRC has worked diligently to secure
feedstock for its facility and has entered into agreements with suppliers in
South America and in Africa. On top of this, with SRC’s proven metal smelting
technology and ability to produce REE metals, the council has secured toll
processing agreements with clients in Canada and Europe, where SRC is taking
REE oxides and converting them into REE metal alloys. This project is certainly
attracting a lot of interest and investment from abroad, and the world is
starting to connect REE technology with Saskatchewan.
At the end of 2025, SRC signed a
historic rare earth partnership with REalloys, reinforcing Saskatchewan’s
leadership in establishing the first fully integrated rare earth supply chain
in North America. And this agreement is for a five-year offtake agreement where
REalloys will purchase a significant amount of NdPr metal and dysprosium and
turbium oxides from SRC’s rare earth processing facility. And this agreement
will deliver very strong commercial returns to SRC and the people of
Saskatchewan while enabling REalloys to deliver rare earth metals to its
defence industrial base clients.
In addition to this offtake agreement,
REalloys has partnered with SRC to conduct a feasibility study for a
large-scale rare earth processing, separation, and metallization complex in
Saskatoon. This large-scale facility would be one of the biggest and the most
advanced in the world, further solidifying Saskatchewan as a global hub for
rare earth technology development with the potential to bring hundreds of jobs
to Saskatoon.
While SRC’s rare earth project is
focused on bringing world firsts to Saskatchewan, the majority of SRC’s revenue
does come from its fee-for-service client work serving industry both within and
outside of the province. SRC is home to Canada’s most complete analytical
chemistry lab, and its services include monitoring, assessment, and testing of
water, wastewater, biofuels, radon detection, crop DNA [deoxyribonucleic acid]
testing, and aquatic toxicology.
Sensor-based sorting is one example of
SRC’s sustainable mining services, and SRC has now become a leader with its
sensor-based sorting services. So with the acquisition of a full-scale laser
sorting unit this past year, the equipment has strengthened SRC’s capability to
deliver efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable sorting solutions to
industry in Saskatchewan and beyond. This laser sorting unit is the only
commercial full-scale sorter of its kind in Canada, and its home is here in
Saskatchewan at SRC.
Lithium is also a key area of focus for
SRC as it supports a growing lithium industry by providing geochemical and
mineralogical services for all types of lithium hard rock and clay projects,
lithium preconcentration technology testing, and sensor-based sorting testing
for all lithium ores.
SRC supports the industry through two
technological research and development areas including lithium recycling
technologies, advancing battery shredding and metals extraction, and direct
lithium extraction technologies.
In 2023 SRC successfully piloted a
lithium hydroxide monohydrate production facility and produced battery-grade
LHM. So this pilot facility is the only one of its kind in North America and
Europe.
In addition, SRC is leading a major
remediation project, known as project CLEANS [cleanup of abandoned northern
sites], that has been ongoing for almost 20 years now in northern Saskatchewan.
SRC was contracted by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Energy and Resources to
manage the remediation of the Gunnar and Lorado uranium mine and mill sites as
well as 35 satellite mine sites in northern Saskatchewan’s Athabasca region. To
date, remediation at the Lorado mill site is complete with long-term monitoring
now under way.
Twenty-seven smaller satellite sites
have been fully remediated and SRC has permanently closed the three mine
openings present, the Gunnar mine and mill site, including completing the
construction of a hazardous material landfill. Remediation work at Gunnar is
nearing completion, and from there Gunnar will enter into post-remediation
monitoring for about 15 years.
Throughout the project, SRC has
conducted meaningful discussion with northern and Indigenous communities by
hosting regular public meetings and providing updates on project progress and
upcoming employment and training opportunities. In fact, SRC has conducted over
200 public meetings with Athabasca communities throughout the course of the
project. And this project will ultimately remediate the sites with positive
economic, environmental, and social impacts, ensuring a very safe environment
for those that live and work in the area.
In closing, it’s very clear through the
achievements of SRC that the organization continues to add significant value to
the Saskatchewan economy, and we look forward to continuing this journey of
growth, driving economic prosperity, and enhancing the quality of life for all
who call Saskatchewan home. I now look forward to taking questions from
committee members. Thank you.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Thank you, Minister. I will now open
the floor for questions. I recognize Kim Breckner.
Kim Breckner: — Thank you, Chair.
Thank you, Minister, and to the staff here today from SRC for your time in
preparing for today and for being here to answer questions. I’ll start with
some questions on funding.
According to the budget, it looks like
an increase in funding up 132 per cent from last year. Is this a one-time cash
injection or do we expect similar levels of funding in subsequent years?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So the additional funding that we’re seeing is to complete the REPF [rare earth
processing facility] project. So when that’s done, completed, then that will be
the end of that funding stream.
Kim Breckner: — Are there any
federal government funds being allocated to that project or any of SRC’s other
projects?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So all we’ve received is about $13.5 million from NRCan [Natural Resources
Canada] and that was capital to go into the REPF facility.
Kim Breckner: — Given the federal
focus on defence spending, is there any strategy to capture some of that
defence funding for SRC applications?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — So it’s
interesting. I guess the focus on our federal government on defence has really
just taken a priority in the last year or so, we would say. And I’d say they’re
just now kind of finalizing . . . well not finalizing but trying to
get their strategy put together. They’ve released their national strategy. And
I know we’ve attended a number of forums — we’ve certainly hosted our own forum
— where we’ve seen significant interest in the defence and aerospace industry
and we’ll maybe include those two together.
And so we know
that there’s significant opportunities that we’re going to be able to play, not
necessarily even just with what we’re doing here but as a province. Because I
think what we’ve been told is we have 23 of the 31 critical minerals that are
essential for defence implications. And we have those in our province here.
We recognize
that the technology that we’ve now developed at SRC is going to play a very
critical role in that, as we’ve seen with the interest that we’ve had literally
from around the world — from not just players in North America, but also from
Europe and ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations] region and ultimately
even South America.
So we
recognize that we’ve got something good here, and I would say we’re just now
getting, you know, a strategy formed ourselves
as to what role and position we’re going to play in Canada’s defence strategy.
And I would say that it’s going to be a significant one.
You know, in some of the round tables
that we’ve hosted supporting the defence industry, we have found that we’ve had
players in this province who have been in that space for six, eight years
already, and you know, just quietly going about their business but playing a
significant role in the defence sector and the North American and European
defence sector.
So we have been having a number of
conversations with our federal colleagues at various ministerial levels and a
number of different ministers just to, I guess, talk to them about what we’ve
got here, what folks at SRC have been able to develop, and then ultimately the
value that it’s going to play in a Canadian defence strategy.
I would say even as we were starting to
entertain offers for the commercial production of the facility, we specifically
kept a portion of that available for the federal government to ultimately take
a position on that and determine how they want to use that in their defence
strategy.
I don’t know, Mike, is there anything
else that we can add to that? Good, yes. Mike reminded me that the federal
government has been fairly . . . I guess right now their priority has
been on the mining and kind of the extraction of critical minerals. And now we
have the ability to show them that we’ve got the midstream processing side,
which they really didn’t realize that they had an opportunity to participate
in. I’d say now that we’ve perfected that process, fully expect that they’re
going to be participating in a significant way. How that is or what that looks
like, that’s an ongoing discussion.
Kim Breckner: — Just to clarify
the last part of your statement there, you mentioned reserving some capacity
within the REPF. So are you referring to . . . I know in the news
release that REalloys is going to take most of the offtake of that, the
commercial aspect. So you’re saying that what’s left over is kind of reserved
if the federal government has an interest in taking that offtake?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So it’s open, it’s available, and we fully expect the federal government will
express interest in that. But at the same time if they don’t, then it’s
available for commercial sale, yeah.
Kim Breckner: — Thank you. I just
wanted to make sure I was understanding correctly.
[16:15]
You’ve previously stated that your vote
35 allocation is generally about 20 per cent of your total revenue mark. Does
that still hold true with this budget, given the significant increase from past
years?
Jocelyn Allard:
— Okay. Jocelyn Allard. So when you speak to the 20 million, roughly, that
is the vote 35 provincial investment that we receive, that is correct. In the
current year budget there is the $20 million towards vote 35 and then the
additional capital funding that we are receiving towards the rare earth
processing facility. So when you look at SRC’s total revenue as an entity in
organization, that $20 million is representative around that 20 per cent
of our total generated revenue, ignoring the 26 million of capital
investment.
Kim Breckner: —
Understood. Thank you. More a big-picture question, and I’m just curious, given
how long SRC’s been around and the commercial aspects of the work it does, and
I remember from estimates last year you talked about how you always budget for
a surplus and you look to reinvest that surplus into different technologies or
research . . . Would SRC ever reach a point where its assets in
commercial services make it financially self-sufficient where we wouldn’t see
that, you know, 20 million year after year from the provincial government?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
I think what you’ve seen with government being involved in a research entity
like this is you’ve seen a lot of innovative research that’s able to be done
because there’s no limitations towards getting to a specific commercial level.
So what that does is it allows a lot of flexibility and ability for a research
facility like this to look at all the intricacies of all key sectors.
And then what you’re seeing now is a
result of having that freedom and flexibility to be able to develop these
industries the way that they have. I would say because of SRC is part of the
reason why we’ve seen our critical minerals and our mining and even to our ag
sector allowed to take such a creative route and kind of be, as we talked about
in the notes, a world-leading entity in a number of these key areas. And as it
is a research institution, allows that flexibility.
And I’d say as we’re starting to see, as
some of these research institutions all of a sudden are losing some of that
core funding from government or third-party entities, you’re finding that
creativity being channelled or almost stifled. So it becomes very narrow in
scope. And that’s the risk all of a sudden if you go that route of it just kind
of running on its own and trying to run on its own ability to generate cash
flow and be fully self-sufficient, that all of a sudden it becomes a very
narrow focus, and you probably don’t get that evolution around that whole
research and development piece.
But I’ll maybe let Mike explain that a
little bit more kind of from what Mike’s time has been at SRC and kind of how
he’s seen things evolve and some of the risks that have come with kind of what
we’ve just talked about. Mike.
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. This is a question that we discuss internally within SRC on a
very regular basis, is the balance in our mandate between being commercial and
a profitable organization and our mandate which is to support economically and
socially the people of Saskatchewan. If you ask the majority of our 400 or so
employees, some of them who are leading-edge scientists, engineers, technicians
in the field, one of the reasons why they stay at SRC is not because we can pay
the most — because we can’t — but because we have that mandate to do good and
do really interesting things.
The mandate also allows us to do the
very hard things that pure commercial companies would not be able to take the
risk to do. For example, rare earths is a really good example of that. You
know, there’s a reason why we’re the first in North America to be able to
develop and commercialize this technology. So we do the hard things that other
companies don’t do.
Other jurisdictions in Canada, other
provinces have gone down the route of — in the last 20 or 25 years — of their
own RTOs [research and technology organization], their own equivalents of SRC . . .
is to say, “Okay, you’re out on your own now. We’re not going to fund you.
You’re going out as a private company.”
Of those companies that were put in that
position, none of them currently exist. If we went back 20 years, there’d be
somewhere between 15 and 20 RTOs across Canada of that sort of scale. Now there
are fewer than three or four of anywhere near the scale of SRC. SRC is the
second-largest in Canada after the National Research Council.
So what I’d argue here is that our
ability to be profitable, our ability to address our public mandate, and our
ability to be able to take that profitability and reinvest it back into
ourselves to do and to set the technology frameworks — for us to be able to do
these very difficult things is quite important.
If we were to be a purely commercial
company within Saskatchewan, some of the things that we do now that are not
particularly profitable or non-profitable but are very important socially in
Saskatchewan and economically to industry in Saskatchewan, would probably not
continue. And that would be, I think, to the detriment of the province.
Kim Breckner: — Thank you. Last
year your officials predicted that there would be no significant impact from US
[United States] tariffs. Do you still consider that to be the case? Have
US-Canada relations impacted any contracts or supply chains? Have US global
tariffs contributed to increase in prices on any materials or equipment?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — So I guess
when it comes to actual components or active
ingredients or items that SRC has required, no, there hasn’t been any material
effect on that.
However there has been a very positive
effect in a number of ways in that (a) the product that we’re even coming into
commercial production with has gone up in value. I think probably more
important though is the amount of interest now that has been coming to SRC from
kind of the middle powers, we’ll call them, from around the world that are now
looking at SRC and the work that they’ve done as an opportunity to kind of help
build their supply chains or their midstream research and development areas.
And what we’ve probably seen at SRC is a
significant uptick now in interest of the delegations that they’ve had coming
through from throughout Europe, India. The Middle East has been significant. It
has been measurably up from where we may have been kind of pre-tariff stage. So
I guess if there’s been a positive that’s come out of that, is the interest and
the role that we ultimately are going to be able to play in supporting kind of
our partners as we’ve seen come to us from around the world.
Kim Breckner: — I’d like to talk
about the microreactor for a few moments. What’s the timeline of the delivery?
You may have stated it already; if you could repeat for me. Are you still on
track to have the eVinci microreactor completed within the next nine years?
[16:30]
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So regrettably the eVinci program has been kind of moved now out of SRC. When
Westinghouse and Cameco had made the big announcement with the significant
contract in the US with a number of reactors that are going to be going into
the US that are Westinghouse based, they decided to change direction on the
eVinci program, and they’re going to focus more on the aerospace and the
defence sector. And that’s just not an area that we’re going to be able to
participate in, that development around the eVinci program. So the project has
been — I guess the term would be — cancelled.
Mike Crabtree:
— From the Westinghouse side.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
From the Westinghouse side, right. And so now I just want to let Mike kind of
talk around how we got to that point, and then some of the things that we’re
now seeing, you know, maybe materializing in that same microreactor space.
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. So the eVinci project was cancelled by Westinghouse, as the
minister has just said. Over the period that we had been working on that
project for several years, we’d also identified other microreactors — both
slightly larger and slightly smaller — for different market niches potentially
within Canada as a whole and Saskatchewan in particular. So we continue to work
to identify and progress those projects.
They are somewhat behind the anticipated
development timeline of the eVinci reactor prior to them cancelling it. So what
we have actually done is put the nuclear project, in terms of an installation
of a reactor, on pause. However the significant proportion of the staff that
were in that nuclear group, around a dozen people, we have taken the key folks
and distributed them around other parts of SRC. These are all highly capable
engineers and scientists, so we have other areas within SRC to work with them.
Kim Breckner: — Thank you. From my
recollections reading materials around the work you’re doing in nuclear, part
of the objective was to use some of that work to provide power to the province.
How has the government’s announcement around refurbishing the coal plant impacted
that work around nuclear reactors?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So I’ll maybe just clarify the role of SRC and eVinci, and this was a project
that was brought to them by Westinghouse. And it was to ultimately help develop
and create the technology, validate it somewhat, you know, just determine what
uses it may have. And then ultimately that was still the design, and it was the
product of Westinghouse so it was still their control.
I mean SaskPower certainly had some
ideas as to where this could possibly fit. And that was one of the roles that
SRC was playing was to try and understand, you know, where some of the
applications may be used. You know, we were assuming mine sites, remote mine
sites, remote communities. But ultimately it was always in the control of
Westinghouse, and SRC was just playing kind of that design and development
role.
But I’ll let Mike talk about kind of the
relationship that we also still have with SaskPower and how nuclear energy is
fitting there and the role that SRC has with SaskPower in the nuclear side.
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. So the relationship we have with SaskPower is to assist and
co-operate, collaborate with them wherever is useful in terms of supporting
their objectives of utility-scale nuclear power. I mean SaskPower’s objectives
are that large-scale 1‑megawatt, 300‑megawatt scale utility power.
The microreactors were very much at the other end of the scale. They were in
that sort of five . . . In fact our mandate was up to a maximum of 20
megawatts, and eVinci was five. So they were very much designed, as the
minister said, for northern mine sites and remote community use.
But coming back to the point there, it
is still nuclear so there is quite a lot of crossover in terms of Indigenous,
public engagement, environmental aspects in permitting that SRC has
considerable expertise in that and gained considerable expertise. We co-operate,
collaborate, support SaskPower in their efforts on the utility scale.
Kim Breckner: — I’m going to shift
to the rare earth processing facility now. I’m not quite clear in my head about
what stages are functional and when they will be functional. So I understand
that there’s three stages, and it’s not that we need stage 1 before we can do 2
and 3. It sounds like we can do 3 right now, where that’s the final . . .
you get the metal out of it. Stage 2 is you get the oxide. And so am I correct
that you’re still working on a technology to do stage 1 and 2 at a commercial
scale?
Mike Crabtree: — Mike Crabtree. You
said you didn’t quite understand it and gave a perfect description. I was
thinking that, wow, that’s fantastic. But you’re correct in that, those three
stages. The third stage, which is the metallization of oxides to the metals, we
already have a furnace, one of the eight furnaces, operational. And that’s
allowed us to actually provide commercial product to the market. And that was
very, very important in terms of validating the quality and the capability of
that part of the process.
The phase 2, which is that separation of
the 17 rare earths and then the creation of the oxides, that is still under
construction and is due for completion at the end of this year, December,
December-January.
And the first stage, which is the . . .
it’s kind of the crushing and processing of the monazite, of the actual ore.
Similarly that’s due for completion and commissioning in that December-January
of this year.
Kim Breckner: — So is it fair to
say that we know how to do it? We just have to build it and test it to be sure
that we can do it.
Mike Crabtree: — We know how to do it. We know how to build
it at scale. The challenge with any sort of plant of this scale — and it’s a
significant scale; it’s 100,000 square feet of plant — is in the completion of
that. But the commissioning and then the ramp-up of production, which will
occur in the early part of 2027, that’s when, you know . . . It’s
quite challenging to ramp-up the production of these types of facilities,
particularly as it’s the first of its type.
Kim Breckner: — So this thing we’re building, like how many
Costcos is that?
Mike Crabtree: — How many Costcos? That’s a really good . . .
It’s probably two Costcos worth.
Kim Breckner: — Okay.
Mike Crabtree: — And we do some great deals.
Kim Breckner: — Okay. So we talked about the importance of
what we’re building here and when it comes to kind of global defence
strategies. And you’ve mentioned the partnership with REalloys. And so part of
that news release that I’m not quite clear on
is it sounds like there’s an agreement for this current REPF that REalloys is
going to take some of the product that we create with it. And then there’s this
other part that talks about a partnership to create — and I’ll have to find the
wording — but basically a bigger version, in layman’s terms. Is that correct?
[16:45]
Mike Crabtree:
— Okay. Mike Crabtree. Yes, you were really nearly there in your assessment.
There are three components to the relationship with REalloys. The first one is
a very straightforward offtake agreement from the facility, from the REPF,
which is at that 70 per cent level, which rises to 80 per cent. And I’ll
explain that in a moment. So that’s the first agreement. So it’s a straight
offtake agreement.
The second area of agreements with REA
[REalloys Inc.] are for them to contribute to the expansion of the REPF from
about 400 tonnes to about 600 tonnes capacity. And that contribution — which is
not an equity investment; it is purely a contribution — that allows them to
take an offtake of that additional material that will be produced, that
additional 200 tonnes.
And that’s why it changes from 70 per
cent to 80 per cent, because it is a larger proportion of that 600 tonnes. In
that second area of agreements with REA, they also have funded us to build, in
our facility, a prototype and a large-scale heavy metals facility. Now this is
something that SRC does quite routinely with clients, where they say, we want
you to house, develop, and build a facility for us to prove that it can be
done. So that’s in that second piece.
Based on that work there is the third
piece, where REA are interested in building a very large rare earths facility
in Saskatoon, which would be approximately 7 to 10 times the scale of the
current REPF. So we talked about, you know, two Costcos; this would be 20
Costcos. So it would be approaching a million square feet, so a very sizable
facility. And we’re at the stages of looking at a pre-feasibility study to be
able to do that. If that went ahead, that would be in the sort of 2031‑32
horizon.
So this type of process SRC, as I think
I’ve mentioned, we’ve done that quite routinely where a client, whether it’s a
Canadian client or a recent one in my mind, is a European client, has said we
want to build a very large facility, not necessarily here in Saskatchewan. It
could be anywhere globally but we want you to design and build the prototype
for us, prove that it can be done. And of course that’s a fully funded
commercial exercise, as is the REA exercise.
Kim Breckner: — What’s different
between the REPF that we’re building now and the very much larger rare earth
processing plant that REA is looking to build in the future with SRC?
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. The obvious piece to that is that 7 to 10X directly relates to
the output of the plant. So rather than it being perhaps 400 tonnes of that
NdPr metal it would be in the approach of 3 000 to 4 000 tonnes of NdPr metal,
so a much larger amount of that NdPr metal.
But also I talked about that section 2,
and that dysprosium and terbium, the so-called heavy metals piece there which
they’re funding us to do the work to prove that that can be done. That piece
would also be included in the large plant at scale, so a very large capability
in these very, very valuable heavy metals as well. So there would be so-called
rare earth light metals, NdPr, and rare earth heavy metals, DyTb [dysprosium
and terbium].
Kim Breckner: — I know in our last
estimates meeting we did talk about those two, the dysprosium and terbium, and
you were working at producing that. That was through a different facility or
with the current facility? So does the one we’re working on now, does it do the
light and heavy or are they separate?
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. So the REPF on the light rare earths, the NdPr, goes through
that full three stages that we talked about: the monazite, the separation to
oxide, and then the metallization. The REPF as currently funded — excluding
anything from REA — on the dysprosium, the heavies, only does the first two. It
does the separation from the monazite and it does the separation to the very
specific dysprosium and terbium and then the creation of the oxides. It doesn’t
do the metallization from oxides to metals. It’s very specialized.
Therefore what REA are funding is that
development of that metallization piece as a privately funded capability for
that DyTb. So ultimately we’d be able to go one, two, three, four NdPr, which
is the design; and then one, two, and then that third piece on metallization
for the DyTb as well.
Kim Breckner: — So what does the
partnership structure look like for the heavy metal, the research, what you
call the kind of like the prototype, proving it can work, and then the giant
facility that can do light and heavy together? What is the ownership structure
there?
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. So the REPF, that stage 1, 2, and 3 for the lights and stage 1
and 2 for the heavies that we’ve just described, is completely owned and funded
by Government of Saskatchewan. It’s SRC. That stage 3 that we talked about for
the dysprosium and terbium metallization from oxides to metals — the
construction of that pilot and that commercial facility, which we as SRC will
host — will be fully funded by REalloys as a very standard commercial agreement
between SRC and REalloys. Intellectual property that is applied by SRC into
that process will remain ours as SRC.
With respect to the large plant which we
affectionately call 10X — which it’s not quite 10X; it’s between 7 and 10X but
it’s 10X — that if it were to move forward, and as I said we’re going into the
pre-feasibility at the moment, would be a wholly owned facility by REA. SRC’s
role in that would be the provision of technology licensing as much as that
facility uses SRC’s technology which would be considerable. And so our role
would be to support the development of that engineering and consulting services
and that intellectual property and licensing into that. But that would be a
fully commercial entity.
Kim Breckner: — So the licensing
aspect of the IP [intellectual property], would that be a one-time licensing of
the IP? They pay a certain fee for that and then it’s theirs to use in
perpetuity? Or do you imagine an income stream with that where they renew each
year to continue to use the IP?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So it’s in still the early stages of understanding ultimately, how valuable of
a commodity that we have. I’d say we’re still reviewing what exactly that
model’s going to look like, where we’ve got some professional work being done,
providing us some guidance and advice on this truly one-of-its-kind technology
that is now the only one available outside of China.
So I would say we haven’t made those
full commitments yet as to (a) how that’s going to be structured, you know,
what ultimately is going to be the best value that’s going to come back to the
Government of Saskatchewan. That’s ultimately what we need to determine is what
is going to be the best value for us. And that’s where right now we’ve
undertaken some pretty in-depth analysis by some folks that are specializing in
that space. And as we get closer, and certainly as we get further into these
discussions, we’ll be able to identify that as best we can.
But also recognize there’s going to be a
lot of commercial, you know, confidentiality that’s going to be built into some
of these business agreements because this is very much a highly competitive
space out there. And as well we’ve got something unique that we’re trying to, I
guess, extract the best value from.
Kim Breckner: — Yeah, don’t cheap
out on the lawyer.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Nope, absolutely. Good lawyers.
Kim Breckner: — You talked about
the uniqueness and the competitive advantage. I guess my concern is if you
build 10X for REA, does that render what we currently are building, the REPF,
redundant?
[17:00]
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
And again just trying to understand this whole rare earth market, from what we
understand is that the growth for rare earth is literally exponential, right.
We call it a hockey stick type of growth for it. And so there’s always going to
be a demand for rare earth elements, certainly separated elements at this level
of purity.
So that’s one thing to keep in mind is
that even though we expect to have a 7 to 10X facility possibly in our
backyard, that’s only going to supply a certain portion of what the market is
going to potentially be out there.
And what this facility is still going to
provide us is that ability to perfect the process, go to the next level, you
know, utilize new technology. Maybe there’s new separation opportunities to
design and then to explore and then to validate. And that’s ultimately what
this facility is always going to be able to do, is to just fine-tune the entire
rare earth process. I think they’re still finding new rare earth elements out
there, and that gives us the opportunity to determine how we can separate them.
There’s a lot of interest in recycling
of magnets now and being able to separate some of the elements again from
magnets. So I think there’s an opportunity certainly around the recycling side.
So there’s always unique and new opportunities to develop new technologies with
this structure. And probably we’re always going to need to reinvest, you know,
what comes back and to acquire new assets to help support that technology and
that development along the way.
Kim Breckner: — If there’s
currently so few of these facilities, and this research really is cutting edge
and unique, and right now only China has the capability to do this kind of work
and this work is so essential for defence contracting, why don’t we build 10X
and rule the world?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Early on in my comments I talked about the 79‑coming-up-to-80‑year
history of SRC. And I think what we’ve seen, the success of SRC is they’ve done
a remarkable job in being able to catalyze essential processes to support an
industry that the private sector now has absolutely run away with.
So we’ll look at a few of those: been
instrumental in helping develop the uranium extraction and processing side;
potash, been very influential in the potash industry; enhanced oil recovery in
oil and gas. All of these things, the core strength of SRC is in the research
and development to get these concepts from the concept side to the design table
to the commercialization.
And then recognizing that there’s
significant capital that’s required to invest in something that has significant
risk associated to it, has to be able to handle the ups and downs of the
commodity cycles because all precious metals are trading, literally, on
commodity cycles as well. Have to remember, a year and a half ago nobody knew
anything really about rare earth elements. There certainly wasn’t interest then
even willing to try and commercialize this process. That was all dominated by
one country. So we recognize that there’s a lot of sensitivities around who’s
also in the marketplace and how easily things can be changed or controlled.
So I’d say government’s job, and
certainly SRC’s job, is to be able to support a key sector and get it off the
ground and get it to that stage then where the private sector comes in and
takes over, and is able to do what they do best. And that’s to extract and to
be able to process, and then to be able to understand the world markets and get
them where they need to be. And we as a province benefit from that as well,
right? As these critical minerals all are sourced from our province, we have
the royalty opportunities on that. We certainly are seeing the opportunities
that there is in commercializing technology, and we recognize there’s
opportunities there.
But I think, you know, what we’ve seen
with our province is that we give the private sector an opportunity to
flourish, and we give them all the tools to do that. That’s our core strength,
and that’s going to be our future.
Kim Breckner: — I’m curious. You
talk about the risk, and it seems that the risk is low enough that REA is
willing to have this partnership to build it. Are there no Canadian companies,
or companies, even federal government that would be able to do the same thing?
Is there no way to keep this more of a Canadian-type partnership?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Not at the level of integration that REalloy and some of the other
international partners are at. We’ve got rare earth deposits. We’ve got one in
northern Saskatchewan. I know there’s a new one in . . . is it
Ontario-Quebec? The Torngat find? We’ve got a magnet manufacturer, but we
really don’t have that full, integrated market that a company like REalloy has
or a couple of the other players would have in the US. And then we know of a
couple in Europe and probably Japan as well.
So yeah, we really don’t have that full
integration, I think, that you’re thinking is maybe here in the country?
. . . [inaudible interjection] . . . Yeah, it’s not here,
no. And I would say even our federal government is a little slow off the mark
to recognize exactly what they’ve got here, and that’s our job to make sure
that they understand that fully.
Kim Breckner: — And there’s no way
to build that capacity or to help the federal government understand a bit
quicker?
I just I hate the idea of being
essentially a critical minerals colony for the US. You know, so much of our
oil, so much of our potash, so much of our resources go down to the US. It’s
like we’re just a resource colony, and we haven’t come into our own. And so I’d
be interested in any ways that we can control our own resources for the benefit
of our own people.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Well I think we also have to remember that North America is a very integrated
market in so many sectors. So even though we may supply . . . Let’s
use uranium as an example where we have the mineral. We extract it. You know,
we get it to a semi-processed state; however we don’t have that further
refining. I think there’s one entity in Ontario, but the majority of that is
done elsewhere in the world.
And so for someone to make that
investment, that’s a significant investment — very significant investment —
that we talked about comes with a very high degree of risk. And that’s probably
something that government should not be involved in is things with a high
degree of risk. Let’s do what we do best, and that’s certainly utilize the
research and development in the tech sector that we’ve got and help, you know,
the resource sector or whoever’s developing that resource.
What we could do is certainly encourage
them to be here in Saskatchewan. And I think that’s what we’re seeing with the
REalloy project is that there is a significant potential for that 10X facility
to be built here in the province. And I’d fully expect if one is built here,
then others will probably follow. And then we become kind of that centre of
expertise, that centre of excellence.
Like we’re seeing the uranium industry
now certainly flourishing here in Saskatchewan. Potash industry certainly
flourishing here in Saskatchewan. Ag value-added certainly flourishing here in
Saskatchewan. So when one comes, ultimately we attract many others.
Kim Breckner: — I see your point
of view, Minister. And I see your point of view about the integrated North
American industry.
I’ve seen it with auto, and we’re seeing
what’s happening to our jobs in Ontario. And so I’m fearful about integration
and being too integrated as we’re seeing job losses. We can have philosophical
debates about the role of government and maybe some risks in my lifetime might
be worth the . . . with the longer horizon that perhaps your lifetime
maybe doesn’t have.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
She just called me old. Did you just call me old?
Kim Breckner: — That was a little
harsh, sorry.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Hair? No hair?
Kim Breckner: — Where was I going?
I wasn’t going to do a shot at your hair or lack thereof.
[17:15]
Mike Crabtree: — Mike Crabtree. So I
think your current question and an element of your previous question talks to
value that is developed and maintained here in Canada and Saskatchewan in
particular.
So just leading off, one of the benefits
of creating that midstream capability that we’re talking about — that 1, 2, 3 —
is that traditionally Canada, Saskatchewan is very good at mining: producing
the ore and then shipping the ore off to other jurisdictions. And creating the
midstream capability to process that to oxides and to metals, as we’ve
discussed, adds a substantial value to that, that we maintain here in the
province and in Canada. So the ability to build out that midstream hub for rare
earths is going to capture a very significant value of the overall supply
chain.
With respect to the facilities
themselves, both the REPF and the other REA-specified facilities that we talked
about, and the potential 10X facility, a very substantial proportion of the
steel, of the cement, certainly of the technology — SRC’s technology that we’ve
talked about, the smelters and the separators — are built, 95 per cent of the
actual raw materials that goes into that technology comes from Saskatchewan.
Not from Canada; from Saskatchewan. Including steel for the building from
Evraz, for example.
So we capture a very significant amount
of that investment, whether it’s government investment in the REPF or future
direct foreign or Canadian or Saskatchewan investment, here in Saskatchewan via
the materials that we procure. Also the construction of these facilities is
highly specialized, so we’re not only employing highly specialized tradespeople
but developing them and attracting them to the province to be able to build
these sorts of facilities.
On the technical and research and
development side, just in the last four or five years of this rare earths
facility we’ve attracted tremendous expertise from both Europe, from Southeast
Asia, and from the US here to Saskatchewan to participate in this.
So the construction of these facilities
is going to be highly valuable for the province, and actually the operation
will also be really highly valuable. We talk about the potential, the 7 to 10X
facility there in Saskatoon. That will need between 700 to 750 high-paying FTE
[full-time equivalent] jobs during its operation, so it’s really significant.
In fact some of the challenges in that will be over that period attracting and
training those individuals, so our engagement with tertiary education here is
also important in building up that capability.
So I think as a whole, in the same way
as perhaps what SRC has done, you know, for many decades, you capitalize the
development of these industrial sectors and then capture as much value in the
province as is possible.
Kim Breckner: — No philosophical
musings about a rare earth metals Crown corporation? Don’t . . . No,
that’s . . . I guess my other concern too is in the realm of national
security, just with what these are used for. And I kind of got to this last
time, but I never got the chance to get an answer.
Have we notified the federal public
safety agency about this intention to enter into the agreement with REA because
of the sensitive technology that theoretically could be crucial to Canada’s
national security?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So I think the one thing to remember is that the heavy rare earths have
multiple uses, and you know, we have the ability to produce them. We have
someone that’s buying them. We can’t really direct where they’re going to be
able to use them because defence is only just one of a multiple number of uses
that the heavy metals have implications for. I think what’s probably a bigger
detail to remember is we retain the IP. We retain the technology. This all
stays in Saskatchewan. We retain control of that.
And then probably the last thing that
we’d put out is that the federal government, although they’re a small investor,
is still an investor in this. So they’re aware of the opportunities that come
with their investment as well.
Kim Breckner: — In our last
estimates you talked about wanting this to be the most environmentally
sustainable facility in the world. And I would assume that these facilities
take a lot of power. And so how does the composition of our power grid affect
your ability to have that claim to be the most environmentally sustainable?
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. So the sustainability that we reference in the REPF is really
in direct comparison to existing plants of this general type, the vast majority
of which are in China, which use very large quantities of water, single-use;
very large quantities of chemicals, single-use; and then the effluent goes
straight into the environment. So it’s fair to say that they’re an
environmental catastrophe. And in areas where rare earths are processed in
China, the land has been salted for what will be generations.
[17:30]
So we were very clear that the REPF was
not only going to be environmentally sustainable from that standpoint, but we
wanted to take it to the next level. And that next level being that this plant
uses significant quantities of water and significant quantities of chemicals,
but it’s zero liquid discharge. So that water and those chemicals are recycled
and reused.
The power for this plant is Saskatchewan
grid power. SRC’s commitment to new power systems and sustainable power systems
is considerable. I mean the Cowessess project, which is about 20 kilometres
from here; the Indigenous power project that was done some years ago, which was
the first wind turbine battery facility in Canada of its type. More recently
we’ve built what’s called a hybrid energy container in association with . . .
Our technology but in association with SaskPower as a client for Descharme Lake
there. So we are very focused on how we move to new energy generation systems.
But for the focus on this plant, it was
really important that we focused on the core technology, as we’ve discussed in
this session, and the development of that technology, and where possible be
very conservative in terms of power usage. So that’s been the focus of this
plant in terms of sustainability.
Kim Breckner: — So if I could
summarize what you’re saying to make sure I understand it, you are the most
sustainable because essentially you’re competing against China, but there’s
kind of a baseline higher sustainability level that you have to meet, that’s
well above China, just to be able to market this technology for other countries
that might be interested in using it.
Mike Crabtree:
— I think that’s absolutely the case because it’s the sustainability thing in
terms of it’s the right thing to do, but it’s also sustainable economically.
Because if you were proposing this plant that would have single-use water, or
even multiple use but ultimately discharge of water, it would be very difficult
from an environmental permitting and an economic sense to make it work.
Kim Breckner: — Right. That
reminds me of the conversation we had last time where the reason you can
compete with China is because of the technology. It makes it cheaper. Yeah.
Okay.
Are we still on budget for this project?
Because I know it’s been a long time in the works. 2020 is when it began. The
budget that you anticipated in 2020, has it varied significantly from then till
now?
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. Think I’ll answer the question a little bit in reverse order.
So in terms of budget and where we are in terms of budget and schedule, so we
are on budget for the funding as approved by Government of Saskatchewan, the
latest funding. And we are on schedule. I think, as we mentioned a couple of
times here, that we’re on schedule for completion of construction of the plant
by the end of this year, and moving progressively into commissioning and early-stage
ramp-up into 2027.
The first part of your question, in
terms of the evolution of the cost and funding of the project from 2020 to
where we are today is very much a story of COVID and inflation in terms of pure
cost. But more than that, the plant as it was envisaged in 2020 was that NdPr
operation 1 and part of operation 2. It was a much smaller scope of work, if
you like.
It also did not include the
sustainability piece that we talked about. Neither did it include — and we
haven’t talked about this in this session — that the monazite itself, the raw
material, is radioactive. It contains uranium and thorium. So the tailings
originally were designed to not extract that uranium and thorium, which meant
that the tailings themselves would have had to go for storage in a radioactive
appropriate site.
We didn’t think that that was
appropriate, so we’ve moved from essentially three-unit operations, as it was
originally envisaged in 2020, to 9- and 10-unit operations as the plant will be
operating at the end of this year.
The good-news story on that is it is a
much, much more capable plant. Not only we can see that, but internationally.
International potential customers, not least REA. REA would probably not have
engaged with us if our focus had just been on the scope of the plant that we
envisaged in 2020. It is because it is a state-of-the-art, fully vertically
integrated, minerals-to-metals plant.
Kim Breckner: — So the funding
commitment that was made from the government funding perspective is the same as
it was in 2020, is that correct?
Jocelyn Allard:
— Jocelyn Allard. So as you mentioned, back in 2020 when the REPF was
originally envisioned, as Mike outlined, we had the three-unit operations. So
at that point, the approval for funding came through the Government of
Saskatchewan around the $30 million mark, with SRC contributing $4 million
at that point in the process.
As we’ve evolved and grown, as Mike
mentioned — COVID, inflation, a number of this, as well as that expansion into
the nine-unit, the vertical integration of the facility — our funding has
increased and our requests have increased because of that. So at this point in
the stage of the facility, our funding is 187 million from the Government
of Saskatchewan, 16 million from SRC, as well as the federal government
contributions through NRCan of the 13.5. So our total capital budget right now
for the facility is $216.5 million.
Kim Breckner: — So the 187 million
request from government, when was that . . . I guess walk me through
the changes from 30 million to 187. So what year did you realize, okay,
we’ve got to go up to 100 million, or now we need 187? And has government
provided the full 187, or are we expecting more to come in capital expenses?
Jocelyn Allard:
— Jocelyn Allard. So as previously mentioned, that first initial contribution
from the Government of Saskatchewan was the 30 million plus the four from
SRC back in 2020. As we evolve through the project from the three- to the
nine-unit operations, our current funding of 187 from the Government of
Saskatchewan, that has come through a number of tranches of funding throughout
the number of years.
So at present, we have received nearly
all of that. In the current budget, there is the ask of 26 million. That
is the last tranche of funding. So it’s a total of 187, and that will be the
final fully committed budget from the Government of Saskatchewan. The remaining
funding from SRC and NRCan has already been provided to SRC.
Kim Breckner: — Okay. Until you
take my advice and we build 10X ourselves and rule the world. All right. Given
that we’re nearly to the end point and we did start a bit late, I’m willing to
cede the rest of my five minutes. We’d like to wrap up, Minister Kaeding, if that’s
okay with you.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Yes. I’ll ask if there’s any other
questions from any of the other members. MLA [Member of the Legislative
Assembly] Patterson.
Megan
Patterson: —
Sure. So I just have one quick question. Just wondering if the minister can
update the Assembly or update us on all the important work they’ve done via SRC
to drive innovation and economic growth in the province, in five minutes.
[17:45]
Mike Crabtree:
— Mike Crabtree. I’ve been nominated for this one. I think it’s a great
question. You know, we focus predominantly on rare earths and nuclear. And this
probably represents less than 15 per cent of what SRC is doing in any given
year, certainly in this last year. I’ll focus on two projects, if I have a
couple of minutes, and I’ll try to do a minute each.
We are engaged in a project with a large
Japanese company who is working exclusively with us in the development of a
radically new minerals evaluation technology. And we’ve christened it
“automated mineralogy.” And to put some context on this, is that the capability
of a lab, any lab in the world, to do the amount of sample preparation and
analysis in this particular field, which identifies a whole range of different
critical minerals in a specific geological area, is about 300 samples per year.
In fact our capability is 300 samples per year.
Under this new system that will come
into operation in the summer, will give us the capability of doing 10,000
samples per year. Ten thousand samples per year from one machine. And you know,
we’ve talked about, you know, how revolutionary rare earths are going to be.
This will cause a quiet revolution in the minerals exploration piece. And it
will be something that will be applied to Saskatchewan first.
Second area is something I think most
people will be aware of: the CEM [Canadian Energy Metals] project, the Thor
project for aluminium in the province. Quietly in the background SRC has been
working with CEM for the last couple of years to develop the technology to be
able to exploit that resource. It is a really interesting resource. It’s huge,
but it requires a different approach. And SRC has been working with CEM to
develop that piece.
So that gives you perhaps an indication
of two areas. This is only two. If I had longer we could spend more time on
this, but just two areas that SRC is making a significant contribution to the
province.
Megan
Patterson: —
Okay. Thank you.
Chair
D. Harrison: — All right. Having reached our
agreed-upon time for consideration of these estimates, we will now adjourn
consideration of the 2026‑2027 estimates for Saskatchewan Research
Council. Minister Kaeding, do you have any closing comments?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Certainly. Just a few brief ones. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Certainly like to thank
our SRC officials, with Mike, Jocelyn, Ryan. I think we got to hear from them
today as to the expertise that they have and what they’ve been able to do to
support our province.
You know, we talk about 27 of 34
critical minerals found in this province. I think SRC has probably touched each
and every one of them in some way, shape, or form. And I’d certainly like to
thank them and certainly thank their staff for all of the work that they do to
help support our resource sector here in the province.
Certainly like to thank committee
members for all but the one respectful question about age. Well we’ll get over
that, yeah. And certainly also like to thank Hansard for their work here
today.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Thank you, Minister. MLA Breckner, do
you have closing comments?
Kim Breckner: — Thank you, Chair.
And again I’d like to thank all the SRC officials for being here tonight and
answering the questions, and to legislative staff again for supporting the
committee tonight. And thank you to all the committee members for
participating.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Thank you to the minister and his
officials, and thank you for committee members, and also thank you to Hansard
and the Clerks here tonight. This committee will now recess until 6:30 p.m.
[The
committee recessed from 17:49 until 18:30.]
Chair D.
Harrison: — Welcome
back, committee members. The committee will now be considering 2026‑2027
estimates for Innovation Saskatchewan.
General Revenue Fund
Innovation Saskatchewan
Vote 84
Subvote (IS01)
Chair
D. Harrison: — We will begin with consideration of
vote 84, Innovation Saskatchewan, Innovation Saskatchewan subvote (IS01).
Minister Kaeding is
here with his officials. I would ask that the officials state their names
before speaking for the first time and please don’t touch the microphones. The Hansard
operator will turn your microphone on when you’re speaking to the committee.
Minister,
please introduce your officials and make your opening remarks.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — Good
evening. Thank you, Mr. Chair. I am pleased to be here for consideration of the
’26‑27 estimates for Innovation Saskatchewan.
So here with
me today are officials from the agency: Kari Harvey, our chief executive
officer; Brent Sukenik, our vice-president of corporate strategy and services;
Avery Vold, vice-president of academic research investments and life sciences
innovation; Drew Dwernychuk, vice-president of energy, mining, ICT [information
and communications technology], and ag tech innovation; Christine
Harrop, executive director, business development, research and technology park
operations; and Dani Wawryk, executive director of communications and
marketing. And I’d also like to acknowledge my chief of staff, Michelle Lang,
and our MA [ministerial assistant] for comms, Arlie Matisho.
Mr. Chair, last fiscal year I spoke
about the collaborative spirit that helped Saskatchewan navigate global
economic uncertainty. And since then, global tensions and geopolitical
instability, fragile supply chains have continued to challenge economies around
the world. But Saskatchewan continues to stand strong. And for years our
government has worked to diversify our economy so that Saskatchewan can weather
volatility, stay resilient, and protect our communities.
Investing in research and innovation has
opened new opportunities, attracted investment, created high-value jobs in
every region of the province. Our traditional strengths in agriculture, in
energy and mining, remain the backbone of our economy. But today Saskatchewan
is also emerging as a leader in crop genetics, ag tech, vaccine development,
nuclear medicine, carbon capture, and sustainable energy. And this is how we
build an economy that is competitive today and prepared for tomorrow.
Innovation Saskatchewan plays a key role
in this progress by turning world-class research into practical solutions
supporting high-growth companies and strengthening our provincial innovation
ecosystem. And every provincial dollar invested by the agency leverages
multiple dollars from federal partners and private industry, delivering strong
value for our Saskatchewan taxpayers.
In ’26‑27 Innovation Saskatchewan
will receive a budget of 32.2 million, a 1 per cent decrease from last
year. With this budget, the agency will continue making targeted, high-impact
investments that are aligned with its four core goals: ensure Innovation
Saskatchewan-funded research creates economic impact and aligns with
Saskatchewan’s research and development priorities; grow and support a
sustainable and inclusive tax sector; strengthen Saskatchewan’s strategic
advantages in cleantech, ag tech, and health tech to position the province as a
world-class innovation hub; and make Saskatchewan the premier destination for
local, national, and international research and innovation.
Mr. Chair, a major priority in this
year’s budget is strengthening Saskatchewan’s leadership in research. Last May
our government launched Saskatchewan’s research strategy, an ambitious,
province-wide plan to elevate Saskatchewan as a global research leader. And
because collaboration fuels innovation, this strategy brings government,
academia, industry, and investors together around a shared mission. And it’s
built around the full innovation life cycle and focuses our efforts where
Saskatchewan has the greatest competitive advantage in agriculture and life
sciences, energy and mining, and critical minerals.
By aligning provincial support to these
priority areas, the strategy strengthens our ability to drive breakthroughs,
attract world-class talent, and secure new industry and global partnerships. It
positions Saskatchewan not just to meet the challenges of a changing world but
to lead with strength and confidence. And this work builds a resilient,
competitive, and future-ready economy, one that creates opportunity,
strengthens communities, and keeps Saskatchewan moving toward long-term
prosperity.
Mr. Chair, a major commitment in this
year’s budget is an additional $3 million for the Vaccine and Infectious
Disease Organization, or VIDO, as it advances its role as Canada’s centre for
pandemic research. And this investment is going to upgrade VIDO’s specialized
facilities, allowing vaccines developed in the lab to be produced at the
early-stage scale required for clinical trials. It fills a critical gap exposed
during COVID‑19
and significantly strengthens Canada’s ability to respond quickly and effectively
to future infectious disease threats, protecting Saskatchewan people and
Canadians across the country.
VIDO is one of the few research
institutions in Canada that successfully developed COVID‑19 vaccine candidates. In
2025 it received $24 million from the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness
Innovations to advance vaccines targeting coronaviruses and other high-risk
pathogens.
VIDO is also deepening its global
partnerships. It renewed its collaboration with the International Vaccine
Institute in South Korea, supporting post-pandemic global health initiatives,
and it launched a new partnership with the University of Saskatchewan’s Centre
for Quantum Topology and Its Applications, exploring quantum-enabled
simulations for next-generation vaccine design, an exciting frontier in
infectious disease research.
VIDO remains one of Canada’s most
important scientific assets, with capabilities unmatched anywhere else in the
country. It has high containment labs, world-leading scientific expertise, and
an end-to-end vaccine development and manufacturing pipeline. So this
investment strengthens Canada’s health security. It supports highly skilled
jobs and fuels growth in Saskatchewan’s rapidly expanding life sciences sector.
It also reinforces Saskatchewan’s leadership in infectious disease research and
ensures our province contributes to the breakthroughs that protect people here
at home and around the world.
Mr. Chair, Innovation Saskatchewan is
also proud to provide $17.5 million in renewed core operational support
for six major research institutions that form the foundation of Saskatchewan’s
innovation ecosystem. These institutions drive discovery, attract world-class
talent, and bring national and international investment into our province.
Their work strengthens our economy, provides opportunities for our researchers,
and reinforces our position as a leader in Canada’s research landscapes.
The Canadian Light Source will receive
$4.1 million. As Canada’s only synchrotron and one of the few open to
industry, the CLS [Canadian Light Source Inc.] employs more than 250 people and
has supported 96 industry clients, generating over $3 million in revenue
in the last three years alone. Its beamlines drive breakthroughs in
agriculture, in mining, energy, health, and advanced materials.
The International Minerals Innovation
Institute will receive $256,000. IMII is unique in Canada for its dual focus on
mining innovation and workforce development. In its first decade, it has
managed more than 50 projects worth over $20 million, supporting one of
Saskatchewan’s most vital economic sectors.
PTRC Sustainable Energy will receive
$1.675 million. PTRC [Petroleum Technology Research Centre] is a global
leader in subsurface energy research, advancing carbon capture and storage,
enhanced oil recovery, and geothermal technologies. It manages major projects,
including the Heavy Oil Research Network, SaskPower’s Aquistore CO2
storage project, and the Energy Innovation Hub at the Research and Technology
Park in Regina. That really pushes Saskatchewan to the forefront of sustainable
energy innovation.
The Saskatchewan Health Research
Foundation will receive $4.85 million. SHRF [Saskatchewan Health Research
Foundation] is the province’s leading health research funder. Over the past
five years, it and its partners have jointly invested more than $28 million
in research that directly benefits Saskatchewan families.
The Sylvia Fedoruk Canadian Centre for
Nuclear Innovation will receive $2.5 million. Home to Saskatchewan’s
cyclotron centre, the Fedoruk Centre supports cutting-edge research in nuclear
medicine, materials science, ag-biotechnology, and clean energy. It was
recently recognized for being the first in Canada to produce Actinium‑225,
a rare isotope used in advanced cancer treatments.
Finally, VIDO will receive an additional
$4.1 million to support operations, including its work leading to global
vaccine development. Its Vaccine Development Centre is fully booked until 2027,
supporting industry partners from around the world, and anchoring Saskatchewan
as a global hub for vaccine innovation.
Together, these world-class institutions
attract top researchers, build international partnerships, and bring millions
in external funding into Saskatchewan each year.
For example, PTRC recently secured
nearly $5 million from the federal energy innovation program for its CO2
reservoir evaluation project at the Aquistore site. This was the second-largest
award in Canada, surpassed only by another Saskatchewan project —
$10 million to Carbon Alpha Corp. in Meadow Lake. This world-first
initiative will help inform future carbon capture hubs across the country.
This is the type of global impact
research that’s happening right here in Saskatchewan. By supporting these
institutions, our government is strengthening a research community that fuels
innovation, attracts talent, and keeps Saskatchewan competitive on the world
stage.
Mr. Chair, budget ’26‑27 continues
the rollout of the expanded Innovation and Science Fund, or ISF, providing
$5.2 million annually to strengthen Saskatchewan’s research capacity and
accelerate discovery, commercialization, and economic growth. The expanded ISF
is a key component of Saskatchewan’s research strategy. It gives the province
the flexibility to pursue emerging opportunities and invest in high-impact
research across our priority sectors like agriculture, life sciences, energy
and mining, and critical minerals.
Since
2018, ISF has invested $26.6 million to support Saskatchewan-led research,
leveraging more than $167 million in external funding.
Launched at the beginning of this month,
April, four new ISF streams will deepen this impact. So these streams are going
to support cutting-edge infrastructure, high-impact research projects,
ecosystem development, and international collaboration. They will improve
Saskatchewan’s ability to secure large-scale grants, often doubling or tripling
provincial dollars, and equip our institutions to pursue bold, globally
relevant challenges.
One recent example of ISF’s impact is
the University of Regina’s Small Modular Reactor — Safety, Licensing and
Testing Centre, or the SMR-SLT Centre, located in Innovation Saskatchewan
Research and Technology Park in Regina. Supported by more than $1 million
from ISF, $4 million from SaskPower, $2 million from PrairiesCan [Prairies
Economic Development Canada], and in-kind contributions from the Canadian
Nuclear Laboratory, this project is one of the most important energy innovation
collaborations in Western Canada.
The centre is going to house the first
modern SMR [small modular reactor] test loops in Western Canada, an essential
step towards safely deploying next-generation nuclear technologies. It will
create 18 direct jobs, support 10 small businesses, and train a highly skilled
workforce, giving Saskatchewan a competitive edge, preparing for the estimated
2,500 to 3,500 SMR-related jobs required to build and operate nuclear power
plants by the mid‑2030s.
This is exactly the type of high-value
opportunity that ISF is designed to unlock: research that strengthens our
economy, builds provincial expertise, and positions Saskatchewan as a national
leader in emerging technologies.
Saskatchewan is already home to one of
Canada’s largest clusters of major science research infrastructure, which
includes the Canadian Light Source, VIDO, the Fedoruk Centre, SuperDARN [Super
Dual Auroral Radar Network of Canada], and Global Water Futures Observatory.
The expanded ISF ensures that these world-class facilities remain globally
competitive and fully connected to international networks.
Strategic investment in research fuels
job creation, drives innovation, and delivers real-world solutions like more
resilient crops, advanced medical therapies, and cleaner energy and resource
development. And it ensures that the economic, environmental, and social
benefits of these discoveries are realized here at home.
By delivering on commitments outlined in
Saskatchewan’s research strategy — including the ISF expansion — our government
is elevating Saskatchewan’s position as a destination for pioneering science,
and keeping our province at the forefront of research and innovation.
[18:45]
To date, $19.8 million in tax
credits have been issued, leveraging $6.19 in private investment for every $1
in tax credits. So $6.19 return for every dollar invested. Importantly STSI has
broadened our investor base. Fifty-nine per cent of participants are new to
angel investing, so this growing pool of local capital is essential to our goal
of tripling Saskatchewan’s tech sector by 2030.
Because of this success, our government
doubled STSI’s annual funding cap in the ’25‑26 budget, giving founders
and investors greater capacity to grow Saskatchewan’s tech ecosystem. Mr.
Chair, we’re building on that momentum. STSI will soon be expanded to include
life sciences start-ups, positioning Saskatchewan to capture more value from
our world-class research in biotech, vaccines, medical imaging, genomics, and
digital health. This shift will help accelerate commercialization at leading
institutions such as the Canadian Light Source, VIDO, the Fedoruk Centre, and
the Western College of Veterinary Medicine.
STSI has already proven its ability to
attract private capital and shift investment behaviour. Extending it to life
sciences is going to amplify that impact. By reducing investment risk and
drawing in more private dollars, STSI helps retain and attract start-ups,
diversify our tech sector, and drives long-term economic growth, making it one
of Saskatchewan’s most effective tools for building a strong, competitive
economy.
Budget ’26‑27 also renews a
million dollars each for the Saskatchewan Advantage Innovation Fund and the
Agtech Growth Fund, commonly known as SAIF and AGF. These programs are key
drivers of commercialization for new technologies that address industry
challenges in agriculture, health care, energy, mining, and manufacturing.
Since 2018, SAIF and AGF have delivered significant returns to our province.
Together SAIF and AGF have committed more than $25 million to industry-led
research and commercialization projects.
These investments have attracted more
than $77 million in private capital, $14.8 million in federal
funding, and an additional $148 million in follow-on financing from
national and international investors. Collectively the programs have supported
the creation of more than 400 highly skilled jobs and generated over 60 new
intellectual property assets. They consistently help companies that develop
practical, purpose-driven solutions for Saskatchewan’s priority sectors.
For example, Greenwave Innovations,
which used SAIF to support to develop Greensense. And Greensense is its AI
[artificial intelligence]-powered energy and asset management platform. This
technology helps industry reduce energy waste, lower operating costs, and cut
emissions — a clear demonstration of the high-impact innovation that these
programs accelerate.
Greenwave has since expanded nationally
and internationally, and now operates from Innovation Saskatchewan’s Research
and Technology Park in Regina, showing how Saskatchewan-grown companies can
scale globally while keeping strong roots here at home. By sustaining SAIF and
AGF funding, we ensure that Saskatchewan’s innovation pipeline remains strong
from early-stage prototypes to market-ready technologies that drive growth
across our priority sectors.
Budget ’26‑27 also includes
$100,000 for the made-in-Saskatchewan technology, or MIST, program. MIST is one
of the few programs in Canada that gives early-stage tech companies the
opportunity to pilot their technologies directly with public sector partners.
This early access to end-users allows companies to refine their solutions,
really validate their market fit, and demonstrate real-world impact — all
critical steps that help Saskatchewan innovators scale and reach new customers.
Since its launch in 2019, demand for
MIST has grown steadily. As of February 26, 98 start-ups have applied, 42 have
been approved, and to date 21 pilot projects have launched with public sector
partners, supported by more than $292,000 in MIST funding matched by partner
contributions.
As our tech sector matures, more
start-ups are ready for enterprise-level pilots, and MIST is helping unlock
that growth. Companies such as SolusGuard and Luxsonic Technologies credit MIST
as a launch pad that helped them gain early customers, improve products, and
expand into national and international markets.
A recent example is Super GeoAI, which
partnered with the Saskatchewan Crop Insurance Corporation to modernize
wildlife crop damage assessment. With MIST’s support, Super GeoAI deployed its
drone-based and geospatial AI platform to produce fast, accurate acreage
calculations. Early results show potential to improve claims processing and
service delivery for Saskatchewan producers. Programs like MIST show how
targeted public sector partnerships help homegrown companies validate their
technologies, build early momentum, and then position themselves for long-term
success.
Mr. Chair, alongside its core programs,
Innovation Saskatchewan continues to support the broader innovation ecosystem
through targeted commitments that help Saskatchewan start-ups launch, grow, and
succeed. For ’26‑27, Innovation Saskatchewan is going to provide $375,000
to Co.Labs, Saskatchewan’s first tech incubator and a cornerstone of our tech
sector. Co.Labs plays a pivotal role at the start of the innovation pipeline
helping founders validate ideas, build early traction, and prepare to scale.
Since 2017 it has supported more than 230 companies, helped create hundreds of
highly skilled jobs, and contributed to raising more than $68 million in
private capital. Many companies that begin at Co.Labs progress through programs
such as MIST, SAIF, and AGF and then ultimately become tenants at our research
and technology parks or establish headquarters here in the province.
One notable success is Liora by EMS
[Environmental Material Science], a Saskatoon-based company that’s transforming
site remediation with real-time data and analytics. Its technology can help
reduce timelines from 20 years to as few as five, while lowering remediation
costs by up to 50 per cent. With $378,000 in AGF support in 2023 and
$5.1 million in seed funding in 2025 led by Saskatchewan’s Conexus Venture
Capital, Liora is now expanding into new markets and reshaping how industry
approaches soil and site remediation. Our investment ensures that Co.Labs can
continue giving founders the support they need to move ideas to impact, just as
Liora has, and to drive our economy forward.
Budget ’26‑27 also renews $400,000
for the technology ecosystem fund. This fund supports programs that strengthen
Saskatchewan’s tech sector from early-stage entrepreneurship to talent
development to industry readiness. Innovation Saskatchewan will continue
prioritizing initiatives that grow the tech pipeline, expand the labour market,
strengthen the investment ecosystem, and advance ag tech. This includes Opus,
Startup TNT, and Cultivator’s Agtech Accelerator.
Two standout examples are the SIGMA
[Saskatchewan Innovation Growth & Market Acceleration] program at the
University of Saskatchewan and Tech Career Bridge in Regina. SIGMA is the first
program in Canada to embed entrepreneurship directly into engineering
education. Through hands-on training, community programming, and mentorship,
SIGMA equips students with the skills needed to launch companies in
Saskatchewan’s priority sectors. Since 2021 more than 500 students have
participated, 15 early-stage start-ups have advanced through the program, and
several founders have moved on to accelerators such as Lab2Market and Co.Labs
while attracting private investment.
One of SIGMA’s top success stories is
Runnr delivery, which has progressed through Cultivator and Co.Labs. It has
received $135,000 in SAIF support, secured more than $400,000 in private
investment and federal funding, doubled its employee head count, and generated
more than $3.1 million in revenue.
By supporting SIGMA, Innovation
Saskatchewan strengthens the earliest stage of the innovation pipeline and
ensures academic innovators choose Saskatchewan as the place to grow. The fund
is also helping expand our tech workforce.
Tech Career Bridge in Regina connects
job seekers — particularly newcomers, students, and career changers — with
employers across Regina’s growing tech sector. In ’25‑26 Innovation
Saskatchewan supported six meetups, bringing together more than 260 aspiring
tech professionals with employers such as SGI [Saskatchewan Government
Insurance], SaskEnergy, SaskPower, Farm Credit Canada, and Plato testing. As
Saskatchewan’s tech sector expands, these initiatives ensure companies can find
the talent they need right here at home.
Mr. Chair, the strength of our tech
sector is also reflected in the successes of our province’s research and
technology parks, two of the most important hubs in Saskatchewan’s innovation
ecosystem. Our R and T [research and technology] parks are more than physical
spaces. They are vibrant, collaborative communities where innovators and
researchers access the networks, specialized infrastructure, and support needed
to turn ideas into real-world impact. Today the R and T parks are home to more
than 160 tenants employing close to 3,800 people, making them among the largest
employment centres in the province.
Since opening, the R and T parks have
supported the launch of more than 228 tech companies with an impressive 58 per
cent still operating today. Many have grown into internationally recognized
leaders including Calian Advanced Technologies and Coconut Software. We are now
preparing for the future with comprehensive master plans under way to guide
long-term development and ensure that the R and T parks continue attracting
companies and talent for decades to come.
And we are already seeing that next
phase. Siemans EDA, a global leader in AI-driven chip design, has once again
expanded its footprint in R+T Park Saskatoon and now occupies more than 40,000
square feet of space and plans to hire 50 additional tech professionals. This
expansion demonstrates the unique advantage Saskatchewan and the R and T parks
offer high-growth tech companies.
And all this momentum extends to
post-secondary institutions as well. The new Saskatchewan Polytechnic campus
planned for the research and technology park in Saskatoon will serve as a major
anchor for the province’s expanding innovation corridor. By bringing industry,
researchers, and students together in one modern hub, this project is going to
strengthen collaboration, expand skills development, and further connect the R
and T parks to Saskatchewan’s broader innovation ecosystem.
We’re also seeing new activity in the
agri-food and the biotech sectors. The Global Agri-Food Advancement Partnership
signed an MOU [memorandum of understanding] with 9 Mile Legacy Brewing to
create new fermentation scale-up capacity. This partnership is going to support
innovators developing fermentation-based products in an emerging field with
strong global demand.
Together these developments show how the
R and T parks drive growth, diversification, and economic resilience while
providing meaningful support to Saskatchewan’s innovators. They reflect our
government’s commitment to shaping an innovative, prosperous future for our
province.
Mr. Chair, Innovation Saskatchewan is
driving the next chapter of our province’s growth. It supports the researchers
developing tomorrow’s breakthroughs, entrepreneurs building new companies, and
industries that power our economy. These investments are building a stronger
Saskatchewan, one that attracts talent, embraces new ideas, and creates
opportunity in every corner of the province.
Budget ’26‑27 reflects our belief
that innovation is not simply an economic strategy. It is how we protect our
communities. We build resilience and we ensure that Saskatchewan continues to
grow and succeed in an ever-changing world. Thank you.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Thank you, Minister. I will now open
the floor for questions. I recognize MLA Breckner. Oh, Senger. Sorry. You told
me that too.
Brittney
Senger: —
People do it all the time. Thank you so much, Minister, for the update. Thank
you to everyone from Innovation Saskatchewan and from the ministry for being
here today. I’m really looking forward to this conversation and to learning
more. I’m apologizing in advance. I am new to this portfolio, so forgive me if
any of my questions are stupid. Please be patient with me, and I appreciate all
of your co-operation.
[19:00]
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — So we
don’t have any direct affiliation with the Bell data centre, but what we are
looking forward to is the incredible opportunities that we believe there may be
with collaboration. And I think the other thing that we’re definitely looking
forward to is the development and continued evolution of AI in the province,
and ultimately what that’s going to do to probably develop a whole new sector
that we can build around, or certainly support the AI sector that’s here
already and be able to expand that. And just looking forward to the
opportunities that we’re going to have in participating in that sector.
Brittney
Senger: —
Thank you. So to kind of further that, absolutely there will be opportunities
for artificial intelligence the more data centres that build here. What
specific collaboration opportunities is Innovation Saskatchewan looking for
with the Bell data centre investment?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So again early stages of development, but I can tell you that what we’ve seen
and heard from so much of our research ecosystem and the number of stakeholders
in the area, that there is a tremendous amount of excitement in ultimately what
this data centre’s going to bring, not just with the facility itself but
ultimately building that AI ecosystem around that.
I know, as we’ve had a number of
engagements with the University of Regina, the interest that’s there in pretty
well every aspect of the university and what they’re looking at for potential
partnerships and opportunities with Bell. Again early stages of what that may
look like, but certainly there will be a number of opportunities presented to
them.
Talking to First Nations, First Nations
is very interested as well in being able to participate in that AI space. They
recognize the growth and evolution of tech right now is on a very rapid
upswing, and they’ve indicated they want to be a part of that. And their
support of, say, the Bell data centre is a great first step in what we see a
great relationship even with our Indigenous partners, certainly in that
research and AI development space.
Brittney
Senger: —
Thank you. So Innovation Saskatchewan provides a lot of grants. With the Bell
data centre coming to Saskatchewan, is there going to be more of a focus on
investing in AI start-ups?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Again Innovation Saskatchewan has actually been involved in supporting AI since
probably 2017, 2018. So you know, again what we’re anticipating with the Bell
data centre is certainly going to open up an entire new frontier.
But I’d really like Kari to just talk
about kind of some of the initiatives and ultimately where we’re at with the
AI, kind of that tech sector right now, and kind of what her thoughts would be
as to what the future might look in that space as well.
Kari Harvey:
— Sure. So what I can say is that, you know, as the minister mentioned
. . . I’m sorry. Kari Harvey, CEO. As the minister mentioned, we are
making targeted investments right now in emerging technologies, like artificial
intelligence, and really in four main ways. And really it’s about driving
productivity and growth of our economic sectors here in the province, so as we
mentioned, supporting industry through our grant programs. We work with our
ecosystem partners to build awareness and capacity. We’re investing in research
infrastructure to support industry adoption and development of talent, and then
also obviously working with the broader government colleagues who will also
have a role in this space.
So with respect to the supporting
companies through our programs, as the minister mentioned, we’ve been
supporting programs since about 2017, some projects for example related to
autonomous ag implements such as Dot technology, Wave9 detecting contamination
in oil wells and scheduling platforms, and health care like Andgo.
Specifically though for this year in
2025, in total we’ve committed just over $3 million to help companies
develop their AI-enabled technology solutions. So for example, through our
Saskatchewan Advantage Innovation Fund we’ve committed 740,000 to three
companies: Kinemek, 450,000 for AI-enabled mine inspection system integrating
radar, light detection, and photo sensors to improve safety; Amb.AI, 200,000,
multi-sensory monitoring platform for underground mines to reduce disruptions
and improve safety; and Nutramate, 90,000 for AI-powered pharmacy tools to
streamline prescription fulfillment and inventory management. And in addition
is that these projects have also attracted about 435,000 in federal funding. So
that’s just in 2025‑26.
Through our Agtech Growth Fund, our AI
adoption funding commitments in this year are 450,000. And that’s towards one
project, NRGene Canada. And that is for an AI-driven genomics platform to
develop higher yield black soldier fly strains for sustainable livestock and
aquaculture feed.
Through our made-in-Saskatchewan
technology program, the funding commitment we’ve made there is about just over
20,000 for last year. And that went to TrackPoint.ai, which is an AI training
simulator that prepares users for job interviews, classroom presentations,
sales calls, and networking events.
And then through the Saskatchewan
technology start-up incentive, we’ve had a total commitment of 1.9 million
of investments made under that program for companies, including Alto
Technologies, which is building a digital platform with AI capabilities for
improving patient experience and reducing administrative burdens in health
care. Liora, who the minister mentioned previously in his remarks, building the
world’s first AI-driven soil and groundwater sensor to detect contamination.
iOrders, building an AI-powered intelligence layer analyzing ordering patterns
and customer behaviour, helping operators make smarter decisions about pricing,
promotions, and growth.
Rivercity Innovations’ IoT [Internet of
Things]-powered automated temperature monitoring solution for grocers,
restaurants, property management, and pharmacies. Lumeca, providing digital
clinical communication tools to health care organizations. Luxsonic, building
immersive health care technologies for education, training, and health care
delivery. Omnee, using AI for home builders to solve problems related to home
warranty requests. VeriGrain, building a platform for providing accurate and
real-time on-farm stored grain quality and quantity information.
So those are examples of the companies
that we are supporting. And I think, you know, the key is that artificial
intelligence is going to affect every sector. And so I think, you know, through
our research strategy in the areas that we’ve identified there, we will
continue to focus on those areas.
I would also mention though, just in
line with the things that we are currently doing to support AI in the province,
we are also partnering with our ecosystem partners to build understanding and
capacity on the opportunities and benefits that AI can offer. So again in ’25‑26
our funding commitments through our tech ecosystem fund was 85,000. That went
to fund 45,000 to AI Saskatchewan to complete eight industry-run table sessions
to collect information from key stakeholders on trends, challenges, and opportunities
in AI adoption in our core economic sectors. These sessions convened
stakeholders, explored how AI is currently utilized across industries, and
uncovered opportunities for greater adoption of AI in Saskatchewan.
And I would just say, in terms of the
general findings of that work is that the importance of training and
development and ensuring that reliable infrastructure is available, including
data centre capacity, that was brought up in those conversations.
We’re also funding AiSK’s [Artificial
Intelligence Saskatchewan] AI expo, which is their flagship AI exposition,
which is designed to demystify AI and empower everyone from students and
start-ups to researchers and regulators to explore its potential. And that
event is taking place later in April.
We’ve provided funding to Co.Labs to
undertake a pilot where they will be running a hands-on boot camp helping up to
10 Saskatchewan SMEs [small to medium-sized enterprise] move from basic AI
experimentation to operational use in their organizations.
And then we’ve also provided 25,000 to
ComIT. And ComIT will be delivering a three-month AI machine-learning skills
program for up to 25 unemployed or underemployed Saskatchewan residents,
focusing on entry-level AI technology roles. And what I would say is that we’ve
worked with ComIT on a number of different initiatives, including working with
underemployed individuals to develop coding skills in areas that industry
requires them. So there’s a very close collaboration with industry to ensure
that their needs are met through the work that ComIT does.
We are investing in our post-secondary
institutions to ensure that we have the infrastructure needed to support
academic and industrial research and the development of talent in Saskatchewan.
In 2025 we provided 650,000 through our Innovation and Science Fund. And that
went to 250,000 to Sask Poly for their Digital Integration Centre of
Excellence, which has leveraged an additional 6.6 million from NSERC
[Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada] and tri-agency
funding. And then the University of Saskatchewan’s Centre for Quantum Topology
and Its Applications, which was recently announced, a $400,000 commitment.
So those are the areas that we’ve been
focusing on. And as I mentioned, from what we’ve heard from our stakeholders,
these are the areas that are of importance to drive AI adoption across our
economic sectors.
Brittney
Senger: —
Thank you so much. I’m a question person, and so with all of that information
I’m having a hard time limiting myself to one question.
Kari Harvey:
— Sorry.
Brittney
Senger: —
That’s okay. And I really couldn’t agree more, Ms. Harvey. AI is going to
affect all industries.
So I guess my next question is, who is
developing any sort of policies around artificial intelligence? And is there
anyone leading it or any sort of rollout plan that would be coming or
influenced by Innovation Saskatchewan?
[19:15]
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
It’s actually a multi-faceted approach that we’re taking as government, both
provincially and federally. So we’ll probably delve a little bit into each part
of that. So I’d say ultimately we just need to take a very responsible,
coordinated approach. I think that’s the most practical way that we do this,
you know, recognizing we have two factors. We need to support the economic
growth and development that’s going to come with AI adoption. But also we have
to protect public trust, which I think is very much . . . We’re all
aware of that.
So the role that Innovation Saskatchewan
plays is really working directly with the industry and stakeholders, and we
need to understand where we can support them delivering real value. You know,
Kari talked about a lot of the initiatives and the great work that we’re doing
to support the private sector in AI adoption and development and certainly
growth. We have AI written into our growth plan, right — the Saskatchewan
growth plan — and we want to . . . It’s directing government support,
kind of a broad AI adoption across all our economic sectors to 2030. So that’s
the role that I would say Innovation Saskatchewan plays.
Then what we’ve seen and what we’ve seen
with this Bell data centre is CIC [Crown Investments Corporation of
Saskatchewan] is playing a very important role in ultimately facilitating those
conversations with other players — private sector players and certainly with
the Crown — involved in AI adoption and certainly the attraction of data
centres. And the development of data centres at SaskTel is already initiated
through their Crown.
SaskBuilds is leading an adoption of AI
across executive government, kind of understanding where executive government
can utilize AI best, how it best suits government, how decisions can be made,
what technology is suitable, and what may not be suitable for use through
government. Certainly through Justice you’re seeing the work through community
safety, and Justice would certainly have legislation regarding community safety
as it pertains to the province.
But what we’re also seeing is that the
federal government has pretty well determined that this is certainly for safety
of consumers, safety of the public. This ultimately is kind of their
jurisdiction, and so multi-level support from all the provinces are agreeing
that the federal government has to play a very significant role in that. But
what we can do as a province is help support and help inform the federal
government as to what that maybe should look like as we develop policies and
regulatory framework going into the future.
So yeah, I’d say overall, you know, the
federal government is the one that’s going to be responsible for developing
that safety framework that ultimately we’re all going to be working with. We
recognize that there’s a balance. There’s a very delicate balance between
getting in the way and, I guess, supporting industry.
And so that’s ultimately the role that
Innovation is playing, is trying to determine exactly how we can help
government navigate to make sure that the private sector needs are looked after
and that we don’t get in the way of development as well for them.
So hopefully that explains where the
multi-level aspect is there.
Brittney
Senger: —
To some extent. So for clarification, predominantly artificial intelligence
policies and regulations as they come into effect as AI evolves in our economy,
which it sounds like it’s already very prominent in Saskatchewan, which is so
great to hear about all of the start-ups and innovation that’s going on.
So just then for clarification, the plan
is for Ottawa to set the regulations and policies for Saskatchewan around
artificial intelligence. Am I clear on that?
Kari Harvey:
— So it would be on the public safety side. So I wouldn’t say necessarily that
they’re determining all Saskatchewan’s policies, right. I think that it’s
really important that this is looked at across the country and not just, you
know, as an individual province.
When you start looking at what is that
balance between public safety, and again not stifling that innovation because
artificial intelligence does, you know, crosses borders, and it doesn’t stop in
Saskatchewan and pick up again in Manitoba. Like to really be effective as a
country and to really embrace and accelerate development as it relates to the
privacy and the public safety, that’s the role that the federal government is
taking.
Chair
D. Harrison: — I’m going to ask MLA Senger to make
sure it’s estimate-related. We’re getting a little off topic.
Brittney
Senger: —
Okay. Sorry about that. Like I said, I’m very much a question person, so my
brain goes a little all over the place.
One
thing that I hear frequently from stakeholders is that it can be challenging to
find employment in the tech sector, particularly if you have a background in,
say, computer science or mathematics where oftentimes people do want to get
into that tech space. So I’m curious as to if there are any specific lanes
within this budget or if there are any plans on how this budget could address
the issue of students being unable to find work after completing their
university degree?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So I think what we’re seeing right now is actually one of the biggest growth
sectors in the province is the tech sector. And quite often we’ve got
entrepreneurs in that space-building capacity. We’ve got a number of
initiatives to help them, you know, get started: venture capital investment, a
number of initiatives that I’m sure we can get into a little later here. And
then ultimately we’ve also created an environment for these tech companies to
develop, to evolve, and then ultimately to commercialize.
And I think what I’m going to do is I’m
going to get Kari to just go over some of the initiatives that we’ve created or
that we’re supporting as we see the needs that you’ve indicated, that there are
certain parts of the tech sector that are struggling to find employees, and
it’s just a matter of being able to (a) identify that this is a tremendous
opportunity.
I know, as I do career fairs in my local
schools, it’s quite disappointing to hear kids thinking they have to go out of
province to get an education in the tech sector when we’ve got an incredible
ecosystem in our research institutions here. And in fact when you have those
one-on-one conversations, we’ve maybe prevented a few a kids from leaving the
province because they just weren’t aware.
And so that’s one initiative that we
certainty have to talk to our education facilities to do a better job of making
sure that they’re talking about the courses and the programs that they’re able
to offer to help folks enter that sector. But I think what we’ve seen is, you
know, the data is showing that the tech sector is probably one of our most
rapidly growing sectors in the province.
So anyway I’m going to let Kari just
review some of the initiatives that we’re participating in to kind of help fill
that gap.
[19:30]
Kari Harvey:
— Yeah, so as the minister mentioned, through our technology ecosystem program
which we allocate $400,000 a year towards that, that program really is geared
towards working with partners in our ecosystem to try to fill gaps that we see
in any given year.
And so developing talent and helping to
ensure that there is opportunity for community and networking and engagement is
one of the things that we certainly focus on. So as I believe the minister
mentioned in his opening remarks, one of the events that we put on is called
the Tech Career Bridge — which holds a series of meetups through the year to
connect individuals pursuing tech careers — offering networking, education, and
job opportunities. And so again, this program links jobseekers with established
tech professionals in Regina, boosting employment perspectives and stimulating
our local technology sector.
We also have seen other events through
Co.Labs. Co.Labs has played a really important role in the ecosystem in terms
of convening community and providing various networking events, whether it’s
through their pitch competitions where they get, you know, 250 people out. In
fact this week they’re having their co-launch event, and we expect about 250
people to be out there. So these are opportunities for networking to get to
know people within the sector.
The other thing though we should say is
that, you know, aside from even just looking and connecting for employment
opportunities, we also through the tech ecosystem program, also try to support
entrepreneurship. So again we mentioned the SIGMA program, which offers a
step-by-step approach to help students grow their entrepreneurial skills
through their technology and innovation programs. And a number of start-up
companies have spun out of that and are being supported through organizations
like Co.Labs.
So really, for us it’s about creating
that environment and that ecosystem for that networking, but we do also look at
that entrepreneurship side through the funding for Co.Labs, through SIGMA,
through Opus, and Cultivator here in Regina.
Brittney
Senger: —
Okay, thank you so much. I’m going to try so hard to stay on track, but I am
already getting to jumping around a little bit.
Okay, before I jump to that question,
I’m going to ask quickly about some of the programs that you referenced that
are receiving grants and funding from Innovation Saskatchewan. How many of
those are receiving, if any, multi-year funding agreements? Or are there any
guidelines around how they can spend their funding, such as, is it limited to
operations? Is it limited to any other specific area or programming? Could you
just provide me a little bit of information on that, please.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So I mean, just to clarify. The programs, you’re asking if they’re multi-year
funded?
Brittney
Senger: —
Multi-year funded. And then if there are any, again like, limitations on how
the funding can be spent.
Kari Harvey:
— Just for clarification, so is it specific programs that you would like that
information — so like for example, Saskatchewan Advantage Innovation Fund,
Agtech Growth Fund — like those programs? Because each of them have different
parameters. So are you interested in hearing about all of those or is there
specific programs that you’re interested in?
Brittney
Senger: —
Well, Ms. Harvey, you gave a really outstanding list. And obviously Innovation
Saskatchewan is supporting a lot of start-ups and a lot of potential, a lot of
growth in Saskatchewan. So I would actually, if possible, would you be able to
table a list for me? Is that possible? Sorry, I’m still a rookie. I don’t
really know if I’m asking the right things.
Kari Harvey:
— So what I’ll do is I’ll just give you a bit of a high-level around the
programs. And then what I would suggest is that there is more detail, like on
our website, around every one of the programs that provides that, you know,
more of that detail around the parameters.
So our Innovation and Science Fund is
really geared towards supporting academic research. That program has four
streams that we’re looking at that have just been rolled out just last week.
And so there are specific parameters around each one of those different streams
which again probably in the interests of time, you know, you might want to look
at the website.
The Saskatchewan Advantage Innovation
Fund and Agtech Growth Fund, they’re both kind of based on the same premise,
which is really accelerating the development and the commercialization of
game-changing research for key dissectors. And this is more industrial based.
The maximum grant of both of those programs is 450,000 and cannot exceed 30 per
cent of the total value of the project.
In the case of our . . . Well
I guess maybe I’ll just stop with those ones. I would say that in all three of
those, we do have multi-year agreements in place. Typically they tend to be
probably two to three years maximum if they are multi-year.
Brittney
Senger: —
Okay, great. Thank you. Okay, now I’m going to jump back to the thing that I
was looking at before, which is the 2030 plan. So I really appreciate the goals
and work that’s being done to support technology and entrepreneurship in
Saskatchewan.
My
question in regards to the numbers that have been outlined — and again written
down somewhere in this mess of papers — is really just how are you measuring
the success and the number of jobs that have been created as you work towards
that 2030 goal? So are they, for example, full-time, permanent jobs? And are
those jobs that are still in existence? Or was it, for example, a job that was
created and perhaps that start-up did not succeed?
Kari Harvey:
— Okay, thank you for that question. So essentially we completed a report, a
study back in 2024 with the intention of really establishing what that baseline
and that measurement, the metric that was going to be used for tripling the
technology sector by 2030.
Essentially the number of employees is
the metric that we’re using to look at what entails tripling the technology
sector. There are a lot of other metrics including revenue from companies,
investment achieved, but in terms of really looking at what the growth of the
sector is to the province, we chose to look at the actual job numbers.
And so what we’ve seen is that on
average since 2016 we have seen — sorry, it’s 2019 — we’ve seen an average of
over 700 new jobs added to the economy, which we see will exceed the pace of
meeting that target of 7,893 jobs. So that’s what the tripling of the
. . . That will be the target. And it looks that we are, you know, on
track to exceed, at least meet or exceed that.
We’ve seen the technology sector have a
109 per cent increase in employment since 2019, which is outpacing all the
Prairie provinces, and in addition we’ve seen that it accounts for essentially
10 per cent of all job creation from 2016 to 2023. So our intent is that we
will continue to do this assessment, and it used Stats Canada data so it’s very
objective, and that will give us the insight into the growth of the technology
sector.
I would just also say that there were,
when you talked about number of companies, there were 347 companies in
Saskatchewan’s technology sector in 2023, which is an increase of 14 companies
since 2019, which includes the addition of five companies with more than 100
employees now. So this really suggests a healthy technology sector, with
smaller companies that are gradually expanding and building their workforce as
well in the province.
Brittney
Senger: —
Okay. I think I had had a look at that previously as I prepared for this. So
just for clarification then, there’s no update on the numbers of people
currently employed in the tech sector beyond what was provided in the 2024
update?
Kari Harvey: — No, we haven’t run
that report.
Brittney
Senger: —
Okay. And then, sorry, not to dwell on this again — I’m just a question person
and I want to understand it — of the people employed, is there any indication
of how many of those positions are full-time, are part-time, are permanent? Do
you have any indication on that?
Kari Harvey: — It essentially is total employees, so we
don’t have that broken down by permanent and part-time or temporary.
[19:45]
Brittney
Senger: — Okay,
thank you. And forgive me if you already touched on this.
You had mentioned that there are more companies setting up head offices here,
and I believe many of these are tech start-ups that have been invested in by
Innovation Saskatchewan. So out of curiosity, of the tech start-ups that have
been invested in by Innovation Saskatchewan, how many of them have headquarters
here?
Kari Harvey:
— So what we’re seeing through the programs that we’re funding . . .
And I’ll refer specifically to the STSI program. So what we’ve seen is like
over 90 per cent of the companies that have accessed investments through that
program — so the tax credits, so having Saskatchewan investors invest in their
companies — have stayed in Saskatchewan.
So through that program we do monitor
where companies are at to determine whether or not they’re still in existence.
And again that rate is again quite high. I believe it’s in the 80 per cent
range. So we’re seeing a very, very high success rate of the companies that
have accessed that program, and we’re seeing that they’re staying in
Saskatchewan.
Brittney Senger: — Great. And then of the start-ups that
Innovation Saskatchewan is investing in, how are you measuring their overall
success? So for example, I know that a lot of start-ups, particularly in the
tech space, are unsuccessful. What are you seeing in terms of the investments
that Innovation Saskatchewan is making? And I know you’ve already outlined some
really great points, and this is maybe more of a question in regards to ones
that are less successful.
Kari
Harvey: — So just to
clarify, like with the STSI program and just to, I guess, be clear that we’re
not actually investing in those companies. So with respect to that program,
it’s up to the companies to attract investors to put money into their
companies, and then those investors receive a tax credit.
The
important thing to note on that is that investors go through a whole period of
due diligence before investing in a company. And so, you know, you have to have
a good business plan and a good path to commercialization. And so I think
that’s why we’re seeing fairly high success rates of our technology companies.
You know, I would argue that we’re doing probably . . . and with the
kinds of supports that we have in the province for our technology companies,
that they are actually outperforming what we’re seeing in other provinces,
which is why we’re seeing that growth of the technology sector here outpacing
our neighbours per capita in Alberta and Manitoba and BC [British Columbia].
We
do track all of our programs. We track the amount of investment and follow-on
investment, which also is a very good sign of success of our companies, whether
it’s through our grant programs like Saskatchewan Advantage Innovation Fund and
the Agtech Growth Fund.
You
know, we also will monitor their employee numbers, their growth numbers. And so
I think just overall, you’re right. The nature of technology companies are that
it is inherently risky. But I would say that we’re outperforming as a province
compared to others for sure in terms of that success.
Brittney
Senger:
— Thank you. It certainly
does seem like Innovation Saskatchewan is doing a lot of great things to
support tech start-ups.
So my next question, are any of the tech
start-ups environmental technology companies?
Kari
Harvey: — So you know,
this isn’t necessarily something that I have a list in front of me about all of
the different companies. But I would say that, you know, a large number of
companies that we have supported through our programs — again whether they’ve
benefited through our STSI program or SAIF or AGF — are environmentally focused
as well, particularly though when you look at our ag tech companies.
And
again just to kind of give you an example, again where we’ve got companies like
Liora, which is integrating new nutrient sensors into their solution, allowing
for real-time tracking of nitrogen losses and carbon sequestration in the ag
sector, demonstrating a reduction in remediation costs for industrial clients
by replacing quarterly manual sampling with continuous 30‑minute
automated data reporting.
I
think as the minister mentioned in his opening remarks, we’ve got Greenwave,
who is working on the environmental systems or operating systems in buildings
to help bring down energy and other focuses on that.
And
we’ve got PathoScan, which is a portable PCR [polymerase chain reaction]
technology to withstand field conditions, providing results in minutes. So it’s
a portable rapid DNA disease testing for crops; AI-driven solutions for
autonomous crop insurance and environmental monitoring through Super GeoAI,
which the minister mentioned.
So
you know, a large number of the companies, I would say, particularly on the ag
tech side, but there would be others as well, whether it’s in energy or mining
capacity as well.
Brittney
Senger:
— Thank you. That’s great.
I’m happy to hear about that. It sounds like there’s lots of positive things
happening.
I wanted to follow up on that and just
ask, you know, have you heard any feedback from the start-ups that you’ve
invested in regarding the use of coal energy?
Hon. Warren Kaeding: — So I think, if I understand the
question correctly, we haven’t heard from any of the start-ups that are
concerned about energy source. I think what we’ve heard from start-ups is they
really appreciate the opportunity that they have to be able to get into an
affordable workspace and an affordable environment that allows them the
opportunities to develop their technologies. I think what we’ve heard from our
start-ups is that they appreciate the collaboration that they have access to in
our research ecosystem.
What
we’ve heard from the start-ups is that they appreciate the financial incentives
and opportunities that we’ve provided them. You know, we’ve heard about the
work that they’re all doing towards more sustainable production, more
sustainable mining practices.
[20:00]
You
know, I think what we’re hearing from our start-ups is that this is probably
one of the best environments that they have in order to develop their business.
In fact what we’ve seen is even interest from outside the province now looking
at us as an opportunity for them to develop.
And
I would say we’ve even had a fair bit of international interest in our research
parks with companies now that are coming here with a great idea. And they like
the idea that they have access to many world-renowned researchers, that they
have access to a very collaborative ecosystem, you know, within the research
parks themselves. As we say, gathering around the water cooler provides an
awful lot of opportunities for them to collaborate. So what we’ve heard from
our tech start-ups is that we’ve given them the best chance to succeed, and
they certainly appreciate that opportunity.
Brittney Senger: — Thank you. Okay, so I wanted to kind of
circle back on the metrics piece. I’m just curious, are there any metrics that
Innovation Saskatchewan is reviewing or tracking year over year to determine
the success of start-ups and the success of where the investments are going?
Kari Harvey:
— So with respect to each one of our programs, we do track; we have metrics
that we monitor. We track everything from jobs created to investment received,
whether that’s through the investment that was received under, for example,
with STSI, or it could be leveraged investment, whether that’s coming from
like, co-investment outside of the province. We do keep track of companies that
are sustained over time.
So we do monitor every one of our
programs. We have metrics that we monitor and we track over time. But I would
also just say that, you know, when you look at the success of the program
. . . So the minister spoke to the fact that the STSI cap was doubled
a couple of years ago. You know, we opened up the program to ag tech companies.
We increased the cap of investment to allow for greater amounts of investment
to happen because we knew that capital investment in ag tech is much greater
than, you know, a software-as-a-service company.
So it’s about listening to our
stakeholders and really evolving our programs to meet the needs. And as we
announced last year with the research strategy and what the minister again
spoke about today is, you know, now expanding the STSI program again to allow
for life sciences companies to be able to access.
So you know, it’s really important that
we listen to our stakeholders. And you know, I feel like we have done a good
job in trying to understand what the needs are and what we need to do to
continue to grow and evolve our sector as different opportunities evolve over
time. And so that’s been really the approach that we have taken.
Brittney
Senger: —
I think that’s very smart to keep track of it and to be able to provide that
ongoing support. I’m happy to hear that that’s available. On the note of
available, the metrics that you are tracking, are they available somewhere?
Kari Harvey: — They would be
available in our annual report which is located on our website.
Brittney
Senger: —
Great. Thank you. I must have missed it when I looked at your annual report.
That’s okay. Okay, now I’ll get back on track to the actual list of questions
that I had.
So last year Innovation Saskatchewan saw
an increase to their budget. This year there was a 1 per cent decrease. Why was
that?
Brent Sukenik: — Brent Sukenik,
vice-president, corporate strategy and services. The 1 per cent was a target
for just a general efficiency reduction for our budget, which was standard
across most of government.
Brittney
Senger: —
Thank you. I see there is $3 million allocated in capital funding. Can you
please explain what that is going towards?
Brent Sukenik: — The $3 million is for a third-party
capital project for VIDO, which the minister addressed in his opening remarks.
Brittney
Senger: — Is this
the pandemic research? Yes? Okay, so I was reviewing estimates from last year
and, Ms. Harvey, I believe that you mentioned that there were metrics that were
being used to determine if the funding for VIDO for their vaccine program
. . . You had mentioned that there were metrics to see if their
funding would be renewed or expanded.
And so I was
just curious — and I don’t think my colleague asked this last year — what
metrics you were using to determine that funding. And sorry, forgive me. I’m
just trying to track it down here. But if you have those metrics, that would be
great.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — With VIDO,
what we’re finding is we have got probably one of the most renowned vaccine
research institutions in the world. It’s interesting as I travel
internationally, how often VIDO comes up in the conversations as to the
contributions that they’re making literally to world health, both human health
and to animal health.
And we’re
really excited to see this level 4 containment facility come on board. That’s
the only non-government entity in Canada that’s going to have this level 4
containment, which absolutely opens the door to significant,
groundbreaking research in vaccine development, again for both human and animal
health.
And so we also recognize — and I know
the federal government recognizes — the value that VIDO brings to the health
security aspect of what Canada is certainly trying to achieve and work towards,
and it certainly fits very well in our research strategy. In fact I’d say it’s
a cornerstone to our research strategy here as well.
And so the success of VIDO is certainly
very important to us. And I know having Kari on the board certainly gives us
that conduit as well to understand exactly, you know, the work that they’re
doing as well as to understand the financial components that’s going into
VIDO’s operations as well.
So, Kari, just comment a little bit on
your experience there.
Kari Harvey:
— Sure. Yeah. So I think, you know, VIDO, along with the other funded
institutes that we provide funding to, those are independent organizations that
have boards, a board of directors. They have their own strategic plans and KPIs
[key performance indicator] that they would be, you know, working towards. And
so we very much are a part of, you know, developing and working with those
organizations on what those strategies and plans are.
So I would say those would be the
metrics that we would be monitoring, as well as ensuring, you know, a strong
fiscal management of the funding that we provide. And by being on the board,
that, you know, that provides us some insight into that.
With respect to VIDO, just in terms of
some of the key research outcomes that they’ve achieved, you know, VIDO is one
of the world leaders in infectious disease in both humans and animals and have
worked on vaccines related to SARS [severe acute respiratory syndrome] and
Zika.
They have a 45‑year history of
vaccine development and commercialization. Eight of its vaccines have been sold
commercially, and six have been described as world firsts. They’ve undertaken
over 80 contract projects to work on various therapeutics that could be helpful
in treating COVID‑19,
and they’re internationally recognized for its role in vaccine development as
one of Canada’s national science facilities.
And so I would just say that again those
are the types of things that we look at, being on the board, you know. We
certainly, you know, support and will continue to support in terms of financial
perspective.
The other thing that I would just say is
of course, you know, a large part of the funding for our major science
facilities comes from the federal government. And the federal government is in
the process of looking at a new model on how they support these facilities of
national importance across Canada. And we’ll be looking at providing more of a
life-cycle management or life-cycle approach. They’re just in the process of
developing that program, which will come into effect in 2030.
And so, you know, we’re not exactly sure
what that’s going to look like except that, you know, there will still be
. . . Right now there’s a funding formula of 60 per cent federal
through Canadian Foundation for Innovation and a 40 per cent match that the
facility has to fund through whether it’s a provincial government or private
sector support or some combination of that. And so I know that there’s some
evaluation on the actual ratio, whether that’s appropriate or not. And again,
it will be a much longer funding agreement that would be put in place for those
organizations such as VIDO, and Canadian Light Source would also fall into
that.
Brittney
Senger: —
Thank you. So I just wanted to clarify . . . Okay. Again, sorry, my
brain is all over the place. So last year it was said that the $4 million
that had been committed was basically going to provide the full funding
required for that pandemic centre to be fully constructed, yet there is the
additional investment this year. And further to that, it says what the funding
needs are and the milestones that it was going to be evaluated on, what the
funding needs were and the milestones that they need to meet receiving that
funding.
So I was wondering if you could speak a
little bit more about, you know, when the decision was made exactly what
milestones you were looking at. And if you have an update on where the
construction is at now versus last year.
Kari Harvey:
— So essentially what the process is is that we have, you know, an agreement
that we put in place with VIDO where they have to meet certain milestones in
the construction process in order to receive payment. So it’s just a matter of
. . . It’s not an evaluation of a metric of success as much as a
metric of, you know, meeting the construction milestone that they have put out,
that they have identified that actually triggers the payment. So that’s how
that works.
[20:15]
With respect to the additional
$4.1 million, so that commitment was made in our budget last year. There
was the announcement that the government was committing to that additional
4.1 million, which as you mentioned rounds out the complete funding now
that’s required for completion of that facility.
So we’ve been working with VIDO to
understand when the cash flow would be required for that according to the
milestones. And so what we’ve determined is in this year, that first tranche,
that 3 million, is part of that 4.1 million. So it’s a cash flow
issue. So we announced the commitment, but we knew the cash flow wasn’t
required until this year, if that makes sense.
Brittney
Senger: —
I think so. I think I follow. Thank you. Okay. And then I also wanted to ask,
you had mentioned federal funding. And so I’m curious if Innovation
Saskatchewan receives any federal funding and what those agreements might look
like.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So the short answer is no. There is no flow-through funding. There is no
contributions from the federal government. But what we do have and what we see
quite often is joint funding agreements. And I’ll just give you an example.
The latest one was just a couple of
weeks ago when we acquired the quantum computer at the University of
Saskatchewan. So Innovation Saskatchewan contributed $400,000 to it, the
federal government just over $2 million. But I tell you, it’s going to revolutionize
that space in the research sector. And again proud of the fact that we were
able to acquire that, and it’s first of its kind in a university in Canada.
And so we’ll have a number of those on
the go on, you know, any given time. There’s no fixed schedule or agenda to
them. It’s just when the right opportunity comes, we’ll certainly be there to
try and support it when we can.
Brittney
Senger: —
Great. So continuing with, you know, some follow-up from estimates last year,
you predicted last year that the effects of US tariffs would be moderate. Would
you say that prediction was accurate in terms of your purview in this, maybe
say petroleum, biomedical, or any other area that Innovation Saskatchewan works
on?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So again a short answer. Have the US tariffs directly affected Innovation in
anything that we’ve been undertaking? I would say no in the negative side.
However what I will qualify for is I will say yes on the positive side. And
what we’re seeing is just a number of engagements now, both across Canada but I
would say more so internationally, where we’re seeing countries that maybe had
some innovation opportunities, you know, with a key partner that maybe just
felt wasn’t quite working out to their expectations.
And as we continue to talk about
. . . And I know as Kari and her team travels internationally as
well. They’ve positioned Innovation Saskatchewan as a destination for so many
opportunities. I mean just we’ve seen VIDO sign some pretty significant MOUs
and agreements and contracts with — I’ll give you an example — the
International Vaccine Institute. When I was in South Korea, I was there to
witness the signing of the MOU between VIDO and the International Vaccine
Institute, which certainly gave VIDO again more international prominence.
We’ve seen, you know, our new research
strategy we were able to launch in the United States, again drove significant
interest into considering opportunities at our research parks in the health
sciences side and certainly on some of our other research sides. The UK [United
Kingdom], we’ve seen a lot of interest in some of our ag tech start-ups
actually having access to opportunities in the UK, and expecting as well we’ll
see some reciprocal business that’s going to come from that.
You know, our folks attended Hannover
Messe. They attended Agritechnica, and the opportunities that they were able to
identify and ultimately bring back . . . Again, opportunities with
the Canadian Light Source, having access to the Canadian Light Source. It’s one
of the few institutions around the world that actually entertains commercial
contracts or commercial reach-out to utilize the light source. And again that’s
things that Innovation Saskatchewan’s been able to facilitate.
Certainly on the side of nuclear
medicine, radioactive nuclear isotopes, again that’s a space that Saskatchewan
excels at. And our folks at Innovation Saskatchewan have been able to have some
significant reach-outs to companies that are involved in that space, and
they’re looking at us as an opportunity to maybe establish a new base in, and
again because of the work that’s been done through Innovation and their
international reach-out.
So I would say, never waste a good
crisis. There’s great opportunities that come from that, and I’d say we’re
starting to see some of that come our way now. And it’s really reassuring to
know that we’re doing the right things when we see that level of international
interest and engagement coming to us in Saskatchewan.
Brittney
Senger: —
Okay, I’m just going to give my messy stack of papers one more quick go-over
here. I think that the majority of the things that I was jumping around on have
been answered.
And so I think that I will wrap things
up here and just again say thank you so much to the minister, to Innovation
Saskatchewan, to the ministry staff, and of course to Hansard and
everyone for being here today. This was very informative. As I said, as
somebody very new to the portfolio, I’m kind of a rookie. I learned a lot, and
that’s what I was really hoping for coming out of this. So thank you so much.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Any further questions?
Kim Breckner: — Yes, I have one.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Okay.
Kim Breckner: — Innovation
Saskatchewan invests in a lot of tech companies, obviously, and we want them to
be successful. And that ultimately means commercial success, people using their
products and whatnot.
It
seems like there’s maybe a large gap between the work you’re doing and the
public purse. And so would you say that the other ministries are well versed in
the companies that you’re supporting? Because for example, you know, I found it
strange that things like our hunting and fishing licence application is a US
company. Surely we’ve got local companies that can do that type of work. So I’m
wondering, if that’s the case, what other opportunities are other ministries
maybe missing to support these companies that we’re investing in through
Innovation Saskatchewan?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
It’s interesting when I travel both across the country, US, internationally,
what I probably hear the most is that people are surprised by the level of
integration of our government and the ability and the opportunity they have to
engage at all levels of government, whether it’s agriculture, it’s environment,
it’s access to the Premier, to key decision makers. I find that we’re actually
able to attract business because we are very integrated and we really have a
minimal amount of silos between ministries.
And what I also see is, you know, in
many of the programs that we’ve talked about here, there’s quite a level of
overlap, whether it’s agriculture, whether it’s, you know, through the ag fund,
whether it’s some of the initiatives we’ve got. Just one interesting initiative
is the Innovation Challenge, which in the last few years we’ve had a number of
problems that have been identified by a ministry that ultimately they’ve put in
front of Innovation Saskatchewan to try and find a solution. We’ve got a number
of examples there.
In fact some of them were to actually
work on some of the issues that you were talking about. One of them was access
to land for rural property access when we talked about trying to get permission
from landowners, you know, to access their land for hunting or access through
quad snowmobiles. Mental health in agriculture, we had a challenge put out, you
know, what are some of the technological solutions that we can help
Saskatchewan farmers actively monitor their mental health. Challenge is put out
and we honestly did have some people that were able to put a solution together.
Workplace safety, another issue identified there. So from Workers’ Compensation
had some concerns.
Solid waste measurement. You know, we’ve
actually got a company that now has gone international from the solving a
problem for solid waste measurement here in the province. I actually, I think
. . . was it the city of Regina had identified that? How can
technology be used to monitor the amount of solid waste generated and disposed
of in the province? So Prairie Robotics, a U of R [University of
Regina] team, put their heads together, came up with an app and a measurement
system using artificial intelligence, a number of other key components to it.
And now they’ve actually got sales, I think, around North America. And if I’m
not even mistaken even internationally now from problem solving an issue that
was identified by the city of Regina.
[20:30]
Rural security. Another successful
project that again was a challenge put out a few years ago from the ministry of
Corrections and Policing about, can we use technology to help solve or deal
with safety and security in a rural setting with rural citizens, rural
property. And ultimately a company called Rivercity Innovations came up with a
solution that again is now marketed around the world — United States, Europe,
Gulf regions.
So just the examples I’ve given you
there is probably six different ministries that have actually identified
problems that Innovation has been able to facilitate solutions for that are
actually now being marketed around the world and are very viable companies that
have been able to establish themselves here and now work internationally.
So I believe we’ve created this tech
sector. Innovation Saskatchewan’s done a remarkable job in creating an
environment where great ideas can come to life and actually reach a
commercially viable stage. That is pretty significant and actually has helped solving
problems around the world. So I think we’ve done a pretty good job starting up.
And I think there’s a lot more work to
do, but I think we’re on a very good trajectory. I think with all of the things
that we’ve talked about here tonight, a number of the incentives, the work that
we’re doing to support start-ups, I’d say we’re on a pretty good trajectory of
success here in the province.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Thank you, Minister. Having reached our
agreed-upon time for consideration of these estimates, we will now adjourn
consideration of the 2026‑2027 estimates for Innovation Saskatchewan.
Minister Kaeding, do you have any
closing comments?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — Well
certainly I think we’ve had the opportunity to talk for a couple of hours about
how many incredible things that are going on here in the province. And I tell
you, every day technology changes the way we do things. And I’m just so
appreciative of the fact of Kari and her team, the people behind you, and the
people, you know, all through the province that are working in Innovative
Saskatchewan that are bringing all of these great ideas to life.
And the work they’re doing, the initiative that
they’ve taken, the support that they’ve been providing, you know, both private
sector and government, in trying to develop policy that’s going to help each of
these companies thrive in this very unsettled times, I think is remarkable with
the successes that they’ve certainly attributed. And I give them all kinds of
credit for the time and the effort and the willingness to literally travel the
world to find new opportunities that we
can develop and work with here in Saskatchewan. So very appreciative of the
work that they do.
But
thanks once again to the committee. Thanks again for the questions, great
questions. And I learned a lot here as well. Thank you to Hansard and
all the officials and keeping track of that. I will turn the microphone over.
Chair D. Harrison: — MLA Senger, do you have any closing
comments?
Brittney Senger: — Once again, thank you to the minister,
to Innovation Saskatchewan. Thank you, Ms. Harvey, for answering all of our
questions, and of course everybody who is here and Hansard. Really,
really appreciate it. This has been a great learning opportunity and I’m
grateful for everyone’s time. Thank you.
Chair D. Harrison: — Thank you, Minister, and your officials
for coming in this evening, and thanks to the committee. But a special thanks
to the Clerks and Hansard for conducting the business here tonight. So
thank you.
Minister,
do you need a few minutes to change out your officials?
Hon. Warren Kaeding: — Yes.
Chair D. Harrison: — Okay. We’ll recess here for a short
time to change officials.
[The committee recessed for a period of
time.]
General
Revenue Fund
Trade
and Export Development
Vote 90
Subvote
(TE01)
Chair D. Harrison: — We’re back. The committee will now be
considering the 2026‑2027 estimates for the Ministry of Trade and Export
Development. We will begin with consideration of vote 90, Trade and Export
Development, central management and services, subvote (TE01).
Minister Kaeding is here with his officials. I
would ask him to introduce his officials. And would also ask that the officials
state their names before speaking for the first time, and please do not touch
the microphones. The Hansard operator will turn your microphone on when
you’re speaking to the committee. Minister, please take it away.
Hon. Warren Kaeding: — Good.
Thank you, Mr. Chair. Good evening, everyone. I’m pleased to be here to discuss
the ’26‑27 budget for the Ministry of Trade and Export Development, or
TED.
Joining me
today is Jodi Banks, our deputy minister; Ryan Cossitt, our assistant deputy
minister of international engagement; Aaron Wirth, our assistant deputy
minister of strategic policy and competitiveness; Tiffany Stephenson, assistant
deputy minister of economic development; Jay Teneycke, executive director of
marketing and communications; Doris Morrow, executive director of international
offices branch; Bradyn Parisian, CEO of Saskatchewan Indigenous Investment
Finance Corp.; and Krystal Medwid, executive director of corporate services. I
think we’ve got the entire office here. Oh, and Michelle and Arlie.
TED’s total
budget for 2026‑27 is $42.74 million, a decrease of 2.5 per cent
from the previous year. This budget is supported by a ministry of very
dedicated employees in Regina, in Saskatoon, in Prince Albert, Ile-a-la-Crosse,
and our nine international trade and investment offices around the world. And
all of them work very hard every day to advance a very strong and sustainable
economy that protects the province.
As we move
into the new fiscal year, we do so in a time of global uncertainty. And this
last year has been particularly challenging. But I’m very proud of our ministry
and the work that it has done to protect Saskatchewan and grow its economy for
the benefit of all residents.
Despite significant economic uncertainty around
the world and geopolitical upheaval, Saskatchewan’s economy remains the
strongest in Canada. The Trump administration’s tariffs continue to cause unpredictability in the global economy.
And until just recently we were also faced with tariffs from China on our
canola products and our pulse products. Although we still have tariffs on pork
products, we are pleased to see the removal of tariffs on canola meal and beef,
and significant reduction on canola seed as of March 1st as a result of the
mission to China that our Premier led alongside Prime Minister Carney.
There
is no doubt that conversations around tariffs continue to cause uncertainty for
decision makers, producers, and citizens alike. As a province that exports 70
per cent of what we produce and where one in three jobs is tied to exports, we
know that the province cannot rely on a single market or a region for its
long-term success.
Stronger
trade diversification is key to our resilience and growth, and our trading
relationships are crucial to Saskatchewan’s economic prosperity today and into
the future. And that’s why we have prioritized international engagement so much
over the last year, and it’s why we are keeping up that momentum. Because the
people of Saskatchewan deserve to have a province, a government, and
communities that protect them when times get tough.
While
trade agreements are negotiated at the federal level, our engagement as a
sub-national has helped resolve trade challenges and keeps international
relationships strong and delivers real results. Recently Premier Moe joined
Prime Minister Mark Carney, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Cameco CEO
Tim Gitzel as they signed a $2.6 billion deal to provide Saskatchewan
uranium to India.
And
this agreement was the result of our government’s consistent efforts to expand
Saskatchewan’s exports to one of the largest markets in the world. And Tim
Gitzel had this to say about the deal:
We’re thankful for the continued advocacy of Saskatchewan
and Canadian governments to foster international trade opportunities that allow
us to meet the needs of global customers and bring the benefits home.
This
agreement in India builds on the Premier’s earlier trade mission to China that
resulted in tariff relief in that country. And our government has consistently
said that it would fight to protect our farmers and the many other industries
that drive our economy.
I
can tell you, Mr. Chair, that our network of nine international trade and
investment offices play a key role in this approach. Saskatchewan has built
this network over the last five years to ensure the province’s prosperity. They
facilitate trade and investment while creating and maintaining diplomatic and
commercial relationships. They advocate continuously to position Saskatchewan
as a reliable supplier to help the province’s firms compete and win
international business. And this is more important than ever before.
[20:45]
They
helped expand Saskatchewan’s global reach by preserving and expanding sales
into more than 160 countries. And they worked quickly to redirect commodities
such as canola, wheat, and pulses to other high-growth markets. The Government
of Saskatchewan has trade and investment offices in Mexico City, Mexico; London
in the United Kingdom; Berlin in Germany; Dubai in the United Arab Emirates;
New Delhi in India; Singapore; Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam; Beijing in China;
and Tokyo in Japan.
Saskatchewan’s
international efforts this past year saw Premier- and minister-led missions to
the US, to China, to India, to Japan, to South Korea, Brazil, the Philippines,
and Thailand to protect market access, attract investment, and strengthen
Saskatchewan’s reputation as a reliable partner. And these efforts are working.
Where we have offices, exports have grown faster. Total exports to countries
with international trade and investment offices has increased from
6.3 billion in 2019 to 7.6 billion in 2025. That’s a 21 per cent
increase in trade values. This offers clear proof that local, on-the-ground
teams are strategic assets that open doors, build trust, and deliver concrete
results.
Last
year the province saw total exports reach $43.6 billion. And if we look
back to 2007, the value of Saskatchewan’s exports was just 19.8 billion.
This has since climbed to over $40 billion a year on average over the past
four years, with eight markets that total over a billion dollars each.
One
great example of the results as part of his recent mission to India, Premier
Moe along with officials from Canada, India, and the University of Saskatchewan
agreed to explore the creation of the Canada-India pulse protein centre of
excellence at the National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and
Management in Kundli, India. The proposed centre is going to be a hub for food
innovation, with a focus on advancing pulse protein processing and fortified
foods development.
Around
the world, people understand that our province can provide the food and energy
security they need. And our work creates the trust and connections needed to
secure major international achievements like those realized in the US, India,
and China last year.
Saskatchewan
Trade and Export Partnership, or STEP, has been an instrumental partner in this
work. STEP plays a vital role in helping our province’s businesses explore new
markets and showcase Saskatchewan products and services to the world, and
that’s why our government provides them funding of $3.268 million in this
budget.
STEP
and TED work closely together to support businesses to reach new markets. For
example, last year Saskatchewan’s Mexico office supported STEP in a trade
mission to Ecuador, Columbia, and Chile. This mission generated over 120 trade
leads, 39 deals in market, and an estimated $12 million in export sales
over the next 12 months.
The
Germany office also worked with STEP to support 27 Saskatchewan companies for
Canada’s largest presence ever at Agritechnica, which is one of the world’s
leading trade fairs for agricultural machinery. The connections made at this
show are far reaching with nearly 700 trade leads, over 150 deals in market,
and an estimated $34 million in sales.
The
US remains our largest and most important market. Through sustained advocacy
and outreach with US policy-makers and industry, our team highlighted the key
role that Saskatchewan plays in providing energy products to the country. And
of course we’ve seen first-hand the value of the Canada-United States-Mexico
agreement. We’re glad to see that energy products compliant under this
agreement, so most notably our oil, can keep finding its way to this key
market.
In
the critical minerals and rare earth elements space, we’ve brought the right
partners to the table. Supported by the Premier’s direct engagement in
Washington, with extensive expertise in uranium and nuclear, the province is
poised to support the increased interest from the US in these sectors, not just
with raw resources to fuel the clean energy but the technology also to make it
all possible.
Cameco
is a major player in this field and, with their recent acquisition of
Westinghouse, they are making big waves south of the border. Now this includes
an $80 billion partnership between Cameco, Westinghouse, and the US
government to build Westinghouse nuclear power reactors announced last October.
The lack of direct US flights has
historically been an impediment to Saskatchewan’s economic development and
investment attraction efforts, and that’s why we continue to provide this
support. They connect Saskatchewan to the US and the US to Saskatchewan,
sustaining vital links for business, trade, and tourism and increasing our
economic competitiveness.
Reinforcing the Saskatchewan advantage,
our province also continues to be a leader in reducing internal trade barriers.
We have long been an advocate for making trade across Canada as streamlined and
as easy as possible because we know that it doesn’t happen by accident. Our
most recent internal trade data reaffirms that the province has strong trading
relationships with other jurisdictions across Canada.
In 2024 Saskatchewan exported
$16.6 billion worth of goods across Canada, and we imported
$12.6 billion of goods within Canada alone. Markets like Alberta and
Ontario are critical to Saskatchewan businesses, and that’s why I have been
working hand in hand with my provincial and federal counterparts to facilitate
the removal of barriers to trade within Canada.
Beyond all of that, our commitment to
facilitate mutual recognition of our goods, our workers, and investment
continues. The Saskatchewan Internal Trade Promotion Act will do just
that, enabling Saskatchewan to mutually recognize goods and services from other
jurisdictions. And this means that Canadian businesses won’t need to go through
unnecessary approval processes, saving them time, effort, and reducing red
tape.
TED also supports the work of
Saskatchewan’s red tape reduction committee, a cabinet subcommittee which is
now into its 12th year. Through the committee’s hard work, they have saved
businesses over $692 million since 2014. And they consistently achieve
their growth plan goal of saving Saskatchewan businesses 10 to $20 million
annually. And our province is going to continue to lead by example on this
front. And why? Because the removal of barriers, the strength in relationships,
and the new connections all lead to investment, and that investment positions
us as one of the best places in the world to live, to work, and to raise a
family.
And it means more companies than ever
before are seeing our province’s potential. We are ranked third globally for
mining investment attractiveness by the Fraser Institute. And by the end of
2026 the province is expected to have commercial production of six critical
minerals: potash, uranium, helium, copper, zinc, and lithium.
One company acting on our potential is
Foran Mining, which now, I believe, is Eldorado Gold. The McIlvenna Bay mine is
expected to begin production later this year, the total capital investment of
$1.2 billion for phase 1. Historic projects like these create new jobs and
opportunities that protect Saskatchewan’s strong and vibrant communities.
On the manufacturing front, the province
has been critical to supporting the defence sector. The recent release of the
federal government’s defence industrial strategy signals Canada’s commitment to
invest in building our defence and military capabilities. Here in Saskatchewan
we have many businesses and institutions that are already heavily involved in
the defence sector, and they are crucial to producing important cutting-edge
solutions such as instrumentation, monitoring tools, drone technology, composite
material used for testing, and communications equipment.
Communication systems for the Canadian
patrol frigate program were manufactured right here at home, for example.
Saskatchewan companies also designed, implemented, and installed the Canadian
Space Agency’s radar satellite communications system. With Canada hitting its 2
per cent NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization] commitment for the first
time since the late 1980s, it truly is a transformation time for the defence
industry, and our province is very well positioned to play a leading role.
For the fourth consecutive year,
Saskatchewan’s private capital investment continues to outperform provinces
across the country. The province’s total private capital investment for 2025 is
$13.6 billion, and that’s a 12 per cent increase from last year, one of
the highest years on record for Saskatchewan.
Our Securing the Next Decade of
Growth: Saskatchewan’s Investment Attraction Strategy is driving that
momentum, protecting our strong and growing economy, and this work is leading
to milestone projects. Take Bell Canada’s investment for their data centre
outside of Regina, for example, one of the largest projects in Saskatchewan’s
history, expected to generate $12 billion in economic value. Its addition
marks 60 large-scale projects either in planning or under way in the province.
That’s over $62 billion in investment from industries around the world who
are taking notice of what we are doing here in Saskatchewan, and TED is very
proud of the role that it plays in making this possible.
Part of what makes Saskatchewan one of
the best places to do business is the personalized support that we offer, and
an important aspect of this is our strong suite of incentives. Last year I was
excited to add two more programs to our already robust list. The first is the
new small and medium enterprise, or the SME, investment tax credit because we
know that accessing capital can be a major barrier to growth, and the SME tax
credit helps address that challenge.
This program helps Saskatchewan
businesses to take the next step, whether that means buying new equipment,
adding a production line, or hiring more workers. It strengthens our economy by
driving private investment, diversifying manufacturing, and building
value-added production capacity. Programs like this one show how government can
play a strategic role not by competing with business, by partnering with it.
The second program we announced is the
Saskatchewan Young Entrepreneurs bursary, and this program is aimed at
providing entrepreneurs aged 18 to 35 with the opportunity to grow their
business. We received a total of 326 strong applications, disbursing 57
bursaries across 48 communities in the province.
Kaylee Miller, owner of Insightful
Growth Pathways from Langenburg, was one of those recipients, and she said
that:
The $5,000 will
allow my business to purchase some different assessments, tools, and sensory
materials that I’ll be able to use in our clinic to work directly with the kids
and the families that we’re supporting. Early intervention is when it’s most
impactful, so this allows me to reach more families and show them the services
that I offer.
Our government is providing nearly
$1 million over three years to the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce to
support this program.
But it’s not just our province’s private
capital investment and competitive incentives that are growing. Opportunities
in economic reconciliation are growing as well. Since its launch in 2021, the
Indigenous Business Gathering’s attendance has increased by 300 per cent. The
event creates a space where Indigenous and non-Indigenous organizations can
meet, can seek partnerships, and can explore future opportunities together. And
all of this plays a vital role in increasing Indigenous participation in the economy.
It has become one of the biggest events of its kind in Canada and helps to
increase Indigenous participation in the economy, which in turn creates strong,
vibrant communities throughout the province.
Andrea Crittenden, president and CEO
from Sixteen Safety Services, had this to say about the event:
The IBG is one of
the most impactful events that we participate in each year. It undoubtedly
continues to create meaningful economic opportunities by directly connecting
Indigenous businesses with organizations seeking trusted partners. The
relationship built here continues to strengthen not only our organization but
communities across Saskatchewan.
We know that lasting reconciliation can
only be achieved by creating economic opportunities for First Nations and Métis
citizens here in the province. And that’s why in addition to our efforts at IBG
[Indigenous Business Gathering], we also offer webinars through our ministry.
Most recently we hosted the Indigenous Business Financing Forum, a free, online
event aimed at connecting Indigenous-led businesses in high-growth industries
with top financing experts, key support resources, and knowledge of funding opportunities.
Over 300 attendees got to hear from experts such as the First Nations Major
Project Coalition, the Canadian Indigenous loan guarantee program, and the
First Nations Bank of Canada.
[21:00]
And we want to keep growing the share of
Indigenous businesses in Saskatchewan, ensuring that First Nations and Métis
communities reap the benefits of this growth. And that’s where the Saskatchewan
Indigenous Investment Finance Corporation, or SIIFC, comes in. SIIFC ensures
that Indigenous communities in the province can realize the long-term financial
benefits of equity ownership in major projects.
The corporation issued its first-ever
loan guarantee last year to George Gordon Developments. A loan guarantee of up
to $7 million is provided to support their 100 per cent ownership of
Wicehtowak Solar Ltd. This solar facility will provide power directly to the
K+S potash mine in Bethune through a 30‑year power purchase agreement.
Securing full equity ownership in this project positions George Gordon First
Nation to play a leading role in Saskatchewan’s renewable energy sector.
Saskatchewan truly is a place where
Indigenous businesses are flourishing, particularly in mining. The Denison
Phoenix mine at Wheeler River will be a significant economic driver with
$600 million in anticipated capital investment. There is an estimated
56.7 million pounds of uranium reserves just in this location, and that
means that this project alone will produce enough uranium over the course of
its life to power 1 million homes for 80 years.
With the largest high-quality deposits
of uranium in the world, the province is poised to fuel nuclear power and
provide global energy security for decades, which goes to show that clean
energy begins in Saskatchewan. Our focus remains on fostering investment
attraction that strengthens Saskatchewan economic competitiveness by supporting
businesses and expanding trade opportunities.
It’s important to remember that the work
that this ministry has been leading and advocating for has been years in the
making. So even with current economic uncertainty, the Saskatchewan advantage
remains clear. It’s what continues to connect the world to Saskatchewan and
builds opportunities right here at home. And it’s what ensures that we can put
more funding into schools and health care and programs that people rely on.
It’s what allows us to hire more teachers, more doctors, and more nurses. It
ensures that we have safe daycares to send our kids to while we’re at work. And
it’s what makes sure that at the end of a long day, we can gather around the
dinner table with those who matter the most.
So whether it’s our efforts in
international engagement, economic development, economic reconciliation,
responsible policy development, or red tape reduction, this work shows how
important it is to have a strong economic foundation that protects the province,
protects our communities, protects our families. And this is the reason that we
continue to work so hard because all of this together brings results to the
people who matter most, the people of Saskatchewan.
So thank you, Mr. Chair. My officials
and I would be pleased to answer questions from the committee.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Thank you, Minister. I will now open
the floor to questions. I will recognize MLA Breckner.
Kim Breckner: — Thank you, Mr.
Chair. I’d like to begin with some questions around the grants and bursaries.
Last year you stated your intent to cap the annual amount of investment tax
credits approved through the small and medium enterprise investment tax credit.
And you also stated at this time last year that you’d be working on a final
version of the parameters in a couple weeks’ time. Have you got that final
version prepared? And can you table a copy of that document?
Jodi Banks: — Thank you. Jodi
Banks, deputy minister. So as we talked about last year, the small and medium
enterprise investment tax credit is a three-year pilot program that offers a 45
per cent non-refundable tax credit for individuals and corporations who invest in
the equity of an eligible enterprise. And as part of the pilot, these
enterprises must be in either the food and beverage manufacturing sector or the
machinery and transportation equipment manufacturing sector.
Kim Breckner: — That’s sufficient.
Thank you. Last year you discussed your intent to change the economic
eligibility benchmarks of the commercial innovation incentive program due to
not having a single successful application.
How have you changed the benchmarks? And
has it impacted the success rate of the application?
Jodi Banks:
— Okay. So the Saskatchewan commercial innovation incentive — or SCII, what we
affectionately call the patent box — offers eligible corporations a reduced 6
per cent provincial corporate income tax rate for 10 years when they
commercialize qualifying intellectual property in Saskatchewan, with a possible
15‑year benefit if most of the related research and development occurs in
Saskatchewan.
It is open to any sector, and it
supports commercialization of patents, plant breeders’ rights, trade secrets,
and copyrighted software. So last year we did go through . . . It is
a very targeted and specific incentive, and it is used for specialized
commercialization in a very complex area. And so we reviewed the program, as we
mentioned last year, made changes to improve its competitiveness and relevance.
And so we did look at the eligibility
criteria, and we also looked at the economic eligibility as well. And so we
have seen one application. It is still in review. But we are heartened to hear
that, you know, companies are noting the changes that we’ve made and that we
continue, as we work with companies in this sector, to talk about some of the
changes that we’ve made and to be able to market it to those where it will
provide important benefits.
Kim Breckner: — Right. That’s one
of the things we spoke about last time, was the marketing of the program. How
much has been spent on marketing to date, and how much of that since you
changed the benchmarks? And it sounds like it may have impacted the number of
applications, yet to be determined? But if you could talk to the numbers about
money spent on marketing.
Jodi Banks:
— So while we haven’t undertaken a specific marketing campaign, we have done a
number of other things. And so we have gone out, talked to universities to get
knowledge and lists of companies that would potentially fit the criteria. We’ve
created lists and had our investment attraction team go out and meet with some
of these companies to talk about the incentive. It is part of our
investment-attraction strategy document. It is listed as one of the incentives
on Saskatchewan.ca, on our website, and our nine managing directors in our
international offices are equipped to speak to it around the world.
Kim Breckner: — When you’ve had
meetings with these potential companies that might benefit from the program,
have they offered any feedback about the parameters of the opportunity?
Jodi Banks:
— So while we have made two of the three changes that we’ve received feedback
on, there is one piece that we continue to get some feedback on. That is the
requirement to establish a sole corporation that isolates the intellectual
property, particularly with businesses that have multiple lines of
manufacturing, or pieces. And so that continues to be something that we work
through.
We certainly, you know, work with
companies to figure out if there are ways that we can work within their
business structure. But we certainly don’t want to be asking businesses to
change their business structure to meet the needs of a program.
Kim Breckner: — Right. I think
I’ll leave it at that. I’m sure the fine taxpayers of the world don’t want to
get into business planning, trusts, shell corporations, all that fun talk. But
from what I gather from this conversation is you are looking at the feedback
and looking at what appropriate changes might be. So that’s heartening.
Let’s talk about the young entrepreneurs
bursary. So this one is administered through the Saskatchewan Chamber of
Commerce. Can you tell me about why the Saskatchewan Chamber was chosen as the
organization to administer this grant?
[21:15]
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
I think the chamber’s been a really good stakeholder for us, for this
government. You know, what we’re seeing is that chambers do a very good job
representing business across the province. And what this did was it gave us the
best reach across the province to get this program into the hands of young
entrepreneurs. There’s no one that knows their communities better than the
local chamber.
It’s a great way to engage chambers, to
also give them focus and opportunities to do more in their communities. And at
the same time, it also offers opportunities for mentorship, which an important
part of the young entrepreneurship program is to provide mentorship to the
recipients.
So I think it’s a great opportunity for
everyone involved: for the young entrepreneurs to be more engaged and active in
their communities, for the chambers to have a good feel of what’s going on and
ultimately giving them an opportunity to support young business people in their
communities and to offer that level of mentorship. And as well the Saskatchewan
Chamber has done a very good job of representing businesses across the
province.
Kim Breckner: — Was there any
requests for proposals for administering the grants or other organizations
considered, such as the SK Startup Institute, Futurpreneur, or Community
Futures Saskatchewan considered? Or was it from the get-go the idea that the
chamber would administer the grant?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So again, I think in my previous answer we covered this as well. But the
chamber gave us the best reach to reach all of the business communities. The
entities that you talked about are very specific in ultimately who they
represent, whereas the chamber is very broad based. They represent the
entrepreneurs. They represent start-ups. They represent very mature companies.
They represent large companies, small companies. And this just gave us the best
opportunity for the reach across the province.
I would say the chamber also does very
good work with each of the entities that you’ve talked about. I’d say they’re
very collaborative in the work that they do, and they also reached out through
a number of these entities to help find, you know, applicants that would
qualify for the young entrepreneurship program. So I’d say there’s somewhat of
a collaborative relationship between all of those entities out there.
Kim Breckner: — Okay. And for
clarity, this wasn’t through an RFP [request for proposal] process?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Correct.
Kim Breckner: —
Okay. And is the chamber receiving an administration fee or otherwise
government covering the costs of staff to administer the grant?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So with the program, there is an admin fee that we pay of $42,750, or 15 per
cent of the program. But with that they’re responsible for the administration
of the program, the application development, the marketing of the program, the
mentorship. We had a number of round-table engagements. They also have an
evaluation board that reviews each of the applications that came in. They’re
also responsible for any events that may be utilized through the process.
So we believe it was very successful,
and actually it was very good value for what ultimately, you know, the province
is getting out of it. We received I think just over 300 applications in the
first year, which we believe is very successful. And fully expect
. . . and we’ve already asked young entrepreneurs to now consider
applying for this tranche.
Kim Breckner: — What other
payments, whether they be administrative or sponsorships or other types of
funding, is the chamber of commerce receiving from the provincial government?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So we can only speak to what Trade and Export Development is aware of, what the
chamber gets from government. So we’re only going to speak to what we provide.
And really the only thing we do is
sponsorship of their food, fuel, and fertilizer conference that’s coming up
here. And I actually think it’s a remarkable outreach that we’ve got, you know,
ultimately attracting interest from all over North America. So I again think
it’s a pretty good investment to be able to track that level of attendees as
well as keynote speakers that we’ve had in the last number of years. But
there’s $25,000 that goes to the chamber for the sponsorship of that event, and
that’s all our commitment to the chamber.
Kim Breckner: — The 326
applications resulting in 57 grants awarded, do you consider that a
satisfactory ratio for the program?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
For start-up, for the year of introduction, absolutely.
Kim Breckner: — And how will you
measure the success of the grant’s initiative or goal?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So this is the first year, as we’ve talked about, where we’ve launched this, so
ultimately calling it a bit of a pilot project in the first year of launch.
Certainly we’re doing evaluations, kind of lessons learned that we’ve been able
to accumulate from the chamber as well as the participants. Each one of the
participants also, part of their obligations is to report back on to, you know,
what they’ve experienced and what lessons they’ve learned and, you know, ways
to improve the program.
Interesting — I was involved in a round
table the other day with a number of the young entrepreneurs that had won this
bursary. And you know, what they were using that money for was everything from
investing in a business plan or maybe a strategic plan or expanding their
operation faster than what they would’ve had an opportunity for, investing in
capital to help build their business quicker.
You know, it was actually quite
invigorating to hear the enthusiasm of each one of the participants as to how
much this actually made a difference in their business, just the opportunities
that they believed that they were going to be able to achieve in a little
earlier time than what they maybe expected.
We’re looking forward to this year’s
program. And I would say a great measure of success is that we have more
applications than we did last year, and they come from more communities across
the province than what they did this year. We’re anticipating our launch is
going to come in a couple of weeks’ time, and we’ll be able to start measuring
that then.
Kim Breckner: — Let’s switch gears
to the trade offices. In chapter 7 of volume 1 of the 2025 auditor’s report,
the auditor found that the ministry needs to:
Strengthen how it evaluates trade office
success by establishing targets for its key performance indicators to drive
expected results and by measuring satisfaction . . . [example, giving
surveys] of all parties working with its trade offices. For example, setting
annual targets for new foreign investments or expansions can help trade offices
measure their performance and impact, as well as clarifies accountability and
focus for trade office staff.
[21:30]
They also found that trade offices
should enhance their public reporting on trade office performance. This is the
quote here:
We found the
ministry periodically reports some trade office activity through news releases
and quarterly reports; however good practice expects public reporting on
results of achieving key performance indicators that outline targeted and
actual results. Sufficient public reporting helps Saskatchewan residents to
understand the role, impact, and economic benefits of trade offices and whether
the ministry’s trade office investments achieve expected results.
I’m sure you’re aware of the audit’s
results. How do you intend to address the findings of the auditor?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So we certainly appreciate the work the Provincial Auditor went into reviewing
the processes that we have and monitoring and measuring the actions of our
trade offices. We’ll say the one metric that we use to measure the performance
of the trade offices is, did business improve or increase in each of the areas
that our trade offices are in? And absolutely it did. In some cases it doubled
if not tripled in the areas that the trade offices are operating in.
So that’s one very simple, quick measure
as to the success of the trade offices. But recognize the Provincial Auditor
had come up with, I think, four very distinct recommendations, which we
certainly appreciate and accept, and certainly have a process now worked out as
to how we’re going to support each of her recommendations. And I know Ryan has
spent an awful lot of time on developing that process. We’ll get him to explain
kind of the direction that we’re headed with that.
Ryan Cossitt:
— Thank you, Minister. Ryan Cossitt, the ADM [assistant deputy minister] of
international engagement. As the minister said, we are taking the auditor’s
recommendations very seriously. We were before the Public Accounts Committee
just a short few months ago.
I’ll start by saying that we fully
recognize and accept those four recommendations, and we’re taking them quite
seriously. And I would just start by saying that these are system-level,
systemic changes. They’re not quick fixes. So we are undertaking a thoughtful
approach, which is how we’ve addressed it through committee in terms of the
methodical sort of way that we’re going to go through this.
So I’ll just be clear again that we’re
treating all four recommendations as system-level improvements, taking them
seriously. Each one will affect how the international offices will collect
data, how they will plan their work, and how they’ll demonstrate results. So
getting this right takes careful design. That’s part of what we’re trying to do
intentionally, and that’s why we’re taking a careful approach. The auditor’s
report, I will say, gave us a really strong road map, so we’re really
appreciative for the work of the auditor and how they’ve laid it out.
And we are implementing in a way that’s
implied. So we are working on — and you sort of mentioned this — methodology
first, then setting targets, evaluating our feedback mechanisms to make sure
that we’re getting some sense of our accomplishments. And then public
reporting, last but not least, really the fourth and final way that we’ll try
to address the results.
And I can go through some more detail on
each of those. This will ensure that we don’t rush ahead of ourselves if we do
it in this sequence, and this is again how the auditor implied in their report.
So we are deliberately undertaking some
consultation particularly with our managing directors, who for the most part
will be responsible for providing a lot of the metrics and KPIs that we are
about to design because we want this system to be as rigorous as we can. And I
would just say we’re making a deliberate choice between not just considering
what is measurable but what is meaningful.
And so that’s why we’re doing an
interjurisdictional scan. It’s why we’re taking stock of what’s happening and
what’s working well in other jurisdictions, including at the federal level, and
making sure that we start with a meaningful set of metrics with meaningful
targets. And we will incrementally improve over time.
So what you are likely going to see is
that in the course of this fiscal year, which is what we agreed to in terms of
implementing the recommendations, the four recommendations, you’ll see that
over the course of this fiscal year. And we will start incrementally and
deliberately and slowly so that we are actually making incremental
improvements.
We are developing options as we talked
about at committee. I would say that, of course, the auditor’s report was not
quite a year ago — in fact probably about half a year — so we just simply
haven’t had time to do all of the work. But we are taking it seriously, as I’ve
said, and work is in full swing. So getting this right’s going to take careful
design, which is why we’re taking a careful approach.
So we are developing options. As we
speak, we are gathering feedback and we will continue to do that work. And we
are on track to do this and accomplish it in the fourth quarter of this coming
fiscal year. So that’s the first recommendation with respect to feedback.
The second one as it is outlined in the
auditor’s report is to establish targets for key performance indicators used to
monitor the success, and you mentioned that. Again with respect to targets,
objectives, risks — reliable data are in place. The auditor did give us some
recognition of that.
But setting credible targets is
obviously the next logical step and we fully agree. In fact we had taken some
steps through work with KPMG before the auditor’s report in that vein, because
we understood that this is an evolution. If we actually step back and think
about the network, it’s actually quite young still. Offices really just began
in 2020 and the last office opened in 2023, so really two-plus years of full
office in full working order at full scale.
And so we’ve always understood that
there was going to be an evolution and a maturity, and so we are at that point
and we’re eager to sort of take a look now that we have the nine offices up.
And we feel that now with two-plus years at our disposal for all nine offices,
we’re probably in a good place to stop and do some evaluation in terms of how
is the network operating as we envisioned it at full scale.
So over the past several months we’ve
been examining good practices from other jurisdictions, as I said, through an
interjurisdictional scan. We have drafted options, so those are going through
internal review and a little bit of rigour testing to make sure that we’re on
the right path.
What I would just say here is that it’s,
again, really important to make sure these are meaningful and achievable
targets. So we want to be very careful that we’re, you know . . .
stretch goals are fine. It’s not about that. But let’s make sure that we’re
able to do a couple really, really well, and incrementally improve over time.
So that is indeed what we’re trying to do.
The next thing that we talked about, or
the auditor talked about and you mentioned, was methodology. That’s really
important, obviously, for consistency. We agree with the auditor that we need
to formally document that so that when we’re talking about KPIs and metrics and
targets, it’s clearly understood what it is that we’re actually trying to
measure and the outcomes we’re trying to achieve.
So again, that work is still under way.
It’s in early stages. We have sort of the draft definitions and formulas and
data requirements for each. It’s technical work, so it needs to be really
accurate. We are basing that very much so in what’s happening in other
jurisdictions. And again, I would point to the federal government and Global
Affairs Canada as one such example. We do have others from other provinces and
territories as well.
So we are planning to continue that
work. Again, that remains to be on track and we are targeting the second
quarter of this fiscal year to have something approved internally that we can
start to implement.
The fourth and final recommendation that
you touched on, that I can give you a bit more detail on, is the final
recommendation which is the reporting of key information. As you mentioned, we
do some of this now. We already published some results in our annual report,
for instance, and in news releases as you mentioned. But we agree that more
consistency publicly is needed and we have begun work to do that.
So again, that’s part of the
jurisdictional scan as well, and we’re specifically looking at other provinces
and the federal government. Based on that review, we do plan to develop some
really clear, reliable reporting format that we can of course do consistently
year over year. And I think that’s the thing that we certainly agree would be
of some value.
So still early stages. As per our
commitment to the committee, we are on track to implement that by the end of
this fiscal year. And we have every expectation that we’ll be able to meet
that.
So I’ll maybe stop there for now. But
I’ll just close by saying, again, system-level changes, not quick fixes. We
appreciate that so that we’re going to take the time to do it right. But we are
taking the auditor’s report very seriously and fully agree with the
recommendations.
Kim Breckner: — Just for my
clarity, you said that you intend to implement changes in order to address the
auditor’s recommendations within this next fiscal year?
Ryan Cossitt:
— That’s correct.
Kim Breckner: — Okay. And for the
record, could you provide detailed budgets for each of the international trade
offices by major expense code, please?
Ryan Cossitt: — Thanks for the
question. So what I’ll do is, as requested, I’ll go country by country and I’ll
try to specify each time so that it’s clear what number I’m reading and what it
is that should be.
So this is for the ’25‑26 fiscal
year. The budgeted amount for China, our China office, I’ll start with
salaries, is $179,000 and goods and services is $891,000 for the China office.
So again moving to the India office, for
’25‑26 the budget amount for salaries is $170,000 and for good and
services it is $830,000.
Moving next to the Japan office, again
for the ’25‑26 fiscal year, the budget for salaries is 160,000 and the
budget for goods and services is 1.045 million.
Switching to the Singapore office, for
’25‑26 the budget in salaries is 170,000 and the goods and services is
1.174 million.
Now to the United Kingdom office in
London, for ’25‑26 we have a salary budget of 170,000 and a goods and
services budget of 1.171 million.
Switching to the UAE [United Arab
Emirates] office in Dubai, for ’25‑26 we have salaries at 160,000 and
goods and services at 1.238 million.
Next to the Mexico office in Mexico
City. For ’25‑26 the budget for salaries, 158,000. The goods and services
budget, 931,000.
Next to the Vietnam office for fiscal
’25‑26, the budget for salary is 220,000, for goods and services is
685,000.
And next and last to our Germany office
in Berlin. For ’25‑26 the budget for salary is 187,000, and for goods and
services, 1.205 million.
Kim Breckner: — I’m sorry. I
didn’t want to interrupt you, so I let you finish. But if you could go back and
let me know for the salary amount how many personnel that relates to.
Ryan Cossitt: — So for those salary values that I quoted,
that is for our managing directors and there is one managing director in each
office.
[21:45]
Kim Breckner: — Okay, thank you.
How much was paid to Global Affairs Canada?
Ryan Cossitt:
— Thanks for the question. So for the ’25‑26 fiscal year the amount to
Global Affairs Canada was $5,657,164 for ’25‑26. And then that was a 20
per cent increase year over year from the ’24‑25 fiscal year.
Kim Breckner: — 20 per cent seems
significant to me as a lay person. Is that significant? And if so, why the
increase?
Ryan Cossitt:
— Thanks for the question. I just wanted to get some other details for you. So
is it significant, I believe, was the question. Certainly, you know, 20 per
cent between ’24‑25 to this year I would say that . . . A
couple things. First and foremost, we did have a switch of office location for
the London office. So prior to that it was housed in Quebec House with the
province. That was because when we first opened the office in London there was
no room at the embassy, unfortunately, so we had to make alternate
arrangements.
So I would first point out that the
dollars that were going to support our office in Quebec House of course have
now switched. So the MOU cost went up, but we’re not paying those dollars to
Quebec anymore. We’re paying them under our MOU with GAC [Global Affairs
Canada]. So it is a significant year-over-year increase.
I would just say it’s fairly common that
Global Affairs Canada and the federal government are undergoing a certain
number of adjustments and changes to their operations. I think we all
understand that there’s some fixed costs when it comes to office space, whether
it’s IT [information technology] administration, security, all the things that
go into buildings.
We’re finding that Global Affairs Canada
is reducing their footprint, but the fixed costs are the fixed costs. And so
we’re seeing a bit of a combination of our cost is going up because there’s
just increases, whether that’s in rent and whether it’s in the services that
they provide. It’s also because, as I said, we’ve shifted from the Quebec House
operations into the embassy proper. So our proportion has gone up.
Kim Breckner: —
I have a question for the minister. When it comes to attracting investment from
sustainably minded jurisdictions — I’m thinking in particular Europe — how
effective can we be at that when our power grid relies heavily on
high-carbon-emitting energy sources?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So you’ve heard us say quite often we’ve got 60 capital projects on the go
here, a $62 billion investment. A number of those projects are European
owned, they’re Australian owned, they’re Indonesian. They’re from around the
world. We have not had any indication that they’re concerned about the origin
of the power.
What we’ve heard about is that they’re
very concerned about the dependability of that power. They’re very concerned
about the affordability of that power and the availability of that power 24‑7‑365.
Those are the concerns that we’ve heard about in capital projects coming to
this province.
I’d say we’ve been very successful at
attracting those projects. We’ve had a number of engagements with
. . . In fact just last week we were in Ottawa talking to ambassadors
from Europe, from the EU [European Union], from the UK, from, you know, pretty
well around the world, representation from around the world. And what they were
looking for was opportunity. They were looking for opportunity to invest here
in Saskatchewan.
What they did appreciate is that we had
a road map as to how we were going to get to emissions-free power supply in the
future. That’s what they looked at, and that’s what they saw as another
opportunity and why they wanted to be here. Because they knew that we had a
plan and it was a plan for the future.
What we’ve seen as well is major
interest, as we talked about, and you hear us talk about it quite often
. . . is food and energy security. Those seem to be the priorities of
many of the countries that we’re doing business with . . . is that
how can the partner, the country that they want to do business with, how can
they help them reach their food and energy security needs? And that’s what they
look to Saskatchewan for. They see us as that greatest opportunity to help them
reach their food and energy security needs.
So those are the critical issues that we
have heard from countries around the world, and especially from the EU. I would
say Premier . . . and Jodi has been with Premier on a number of
occasions in Germany and in London, literally where a lot of the investment
from Europe flows through. And no one has talked about our energy supply. What
they’ve talked about energy supply is our road map to emissions-free energy.
And what they’ve talked about: is it readily available?
And I would say just in the last few
weeks the reason that Bell has come here is because we have reliable,
dependable surplus energy available for them. And those are the things that are
going to attract business into the future.
Kim Breckner: — Thank you,
Minister. So if I’m understanding correctly, for the record, you have not heard
any concerns from industry about the plans to refurbish the coal plant?
Hon. Warren Kaeding: — Correct.
Kim Breckner: — Let’s talk about
the Bell data centre. I think that a lot of people have questions, and this
could be an opportunity to answer a lot of those questions. My first question
is, why wasn’t this project subject to an environmental impact assessment under
The Environmental Assessment Act?
Chair
D. Harrison: — Minister, before you . . . Like if you
want to answer . . . It’s not relevant to your file, so feel free if
you want, but if not you can direct it.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — We will discuss the relevance to that file, yes. So what Trade and
Export does when they’re working on investment attraction is . . .
Very proud of the fact that we offer concierge service.
What we do is we look at the opportunity and understand all of the background
behind it. And then we will ensure that they have every opportunity at the most
expedient way possible to get in front of the ministries that are required for
each one of the appropriate metrics for them to be able to establish their
business here.
The environmental assessment is
determined by Environment, so that would be their responsibility to determine
whether it’s required or not required for a project of that size.
[22:00]
Kim Breckner: — Minister, my
understanding from the description of the Ministry of Trade and Export
Development is that it facilitates a coordinated cross-government approach to
attract investment. And so are you telling me that you don’t know why this
investment wasn’t subject to that requirement under the Act? Or are you telling
me that you’re not answering because you don’t think it’s relevant to your
ministry?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Well I think you answered your own question with the role that Trade and Export
does, and that’s to facilitate the cross-ministry approach to whatever is
required for a project like that. So that is Environment’s decision to
determine whether it requires an environmental impact assessment or not. That’s
not our decision. We’re not aware of ultimately why or why not. That is
strictly the Ministry of Environment’s decision.
Kim Breckner: — Okay, so the
Ministry of Environment didn’t advise you about why they made the decision they
did or didn’t.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
No.
Kim Breckner: — Does Bell have any
previous experience building data centres?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
From what we understand reading the press releases of Bell, they are planning
other data centres around the country. But what I will say is that what we have
heard from industry and what we’ve also heard from stakeholders, from the
federal government, is data sovereignty is important. It’s crucial to the
security of their businesses as we move into the future.
So what we’ve heard from industry and
stakeholders is that they’re very much looking forward to the opportunity they
may have with Bell and this data centre in providing them that level of data
security that they know is crucial to their business success in the future. So
I think again we’re very proud of the fact that a company such as Bell is
willing to make Canada’s third-largest capital investment in the country and
that they want to do it here.
Kim Breckner: — The press release
talked about 80 permanent jobs. Are these 80 permanent jobs situated in
Saskatchewan? People living here, paying taxes here?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So Bell, in their press conference that we participated in, talked about
there’s going to be up to 800 skilled trades and engineering jobs that’s going
to come with the construction of the data centre, and that they’re going to
have a minimum of 80 full-time jobs that are going to be created once the
facility is operational.
So fully expect . . . And then
what we understand is there could be up to 750 additional community jobs that
may be created to support the facility, as you get with any major
infrastructure project. You get a number of tertiary businesses that now get to
spring up and develop to support that major business when it gets established.
Kim Breckner: — I guess I was just
looking for clarification about where these jobs are actually situated. So yes,
it says that this investment will create jobs. But are they people who are in
Ontario doing remote work for the data centre, or are they kind of boots-on-the-ground,
on-site maintenance work?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — Our
understanding is that they’re going to be located here in the province around
the project.
Kim Breckner: —
Thank you, Minister. So from my understanding of this conversation so far, in
facilitating the investment there is no proactive talk about whether there
would be an environmental impact assessment required. Was there any proactive
thought to the energy consumption? Particularly did you have discussions with
Bell about the amount of energy? And could you confirm for me, if so, the
amount of energy that this project will be consuming.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So again, with the announcement that Bell made when we were here in Regina,
they talked about that they’re developing an AI hyperscale data centre
requiring 300 megawatts of power. That’s going to be required by December 31st
of 2026. So the reason that they’re here is because we have available,
dispatchable, dependable, baseload power. We’re going to be able to supply that
300 megawatts to that facility and then ultimately they’re going to be
generally using other forms of generation for backup power.
Kim Breckner: — Am I understanding
correctly that SaskPower currently has that amount? Or will there need to be
new power generation to serve this project?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
As I’ve said, the reason that they are here is because we have dependable, we
have dispatchable baseload power. So it is currently available. Okay?
I’m . . .
Kim Breckner: — Right. So we have
300 megawatts that we can produce right now that is just sitting idle?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
It is available, right.
Kim Breckner: — Okay, so there’s
not going to be any new generation. Like we’re not going to build any more
natural gas plants or anything like that to service this project besides what
they’re building, their behind-the-fence generation, as backup.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
That is my understanding. And I would say we’re probably getting to the point
now where . . . Ultimately who facilitated this deal was CIC. And I
think a lot of these questions now probably need to be directed to CIC.
As I talked about in the beginning of
this line of questioning here, the role that Trade and Export does is it’s here
to facilitate opportunities. We get them in front of the entities that they
need to in order to support the project. And then this project was facilitated
by CIC.
Chair
D. Harrison: — I’d ask the member to please move on
from this line of questioning as it’s not relevant to Trade and Export.
Kim Breckner: — It’s not relevant
to Trade and Export? So this ministry was not involved in getting this
investment?
Chair
D. Harrison: — I’m saying it’s not relevant to this
line of questioning, so please move on from it.
Kim Breckner: — I’m sorry. Can you
explain? So if the ministry was involved in bringing in this investment, then
it’s relevant, is it not, for the ministry?
Chair
D. Harrison: — No, it’s not relevant to Trade and
Export Development. It’s relevant to CIC and SaskPower.
Kim Breckner: — I think
. . . Okay, so I am confused then obviously. So I will ask my
question to be unconfused. Did this ministry have involvement in bringing this
investment to Saskatchewan?
Jodi Banks: — So at Trade and
Export Development we worked very closely with CIC on the development of this
investment. However when it came to things like the availability of power, that
is a SaskPower piece. What we were able to go back to . . . After working
with CIC and SaskPower we were able to go back to the proponent, Bell, and say,
if you build here the province gives a commitment there is power is available.
How that power is, or what it is now, we wouldn’t know that. That would be a
SaskPower question.
Kim Breckner: — Okay, so you don’t
know how that power would be generated. But you must know the commercial
aspects, for example, the rates. Is Bell going to be paying the same rate as
residential power users?
Chair
D. Harrison: — Minister, you don’t have to answer
that. That is a CIC question. Yeah.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
I’m just going to maybe explain this one more time what Trade and Export is
responsible for. Trade and Export is responsible for looking at an opportunity.
If it comes our way, we then get them in front of all the responsible entities
that they need to have their discussions for in order to see this project move
ahead.
In this case, as we’ve talked about a
number of times now, two important entities that they obviously need to get in
front of them is CIC and SaskPower. That’s our level of involvement, is to make
sure that all of those entities, the conversations, the engagement is
facilitated by us. We’re not privy to what all of those discussions are. We’re
not privy to what the end result might be and what they’ve negotiated with
those entities.
Same thing would be if K+S wanted to
expand their potash mine — which they’re doing — they’re going to need more
natural gas supply. We’re not privy to what that discussion is going to be.
We’re not privy to what value they’re paying for that gas. Those are the things
that are discussed on a business-to-business level. And honestly, they come
with a lot of confidentiality that goes with it.
So no, we’re not informed of all of
those details in some of those projects that are coming forward.
Kim Breckner: — This project
specifically, you do not know the rates that they will be receiving for the
power?
Chair
D. Harrison: — MLA
Breckner, this has to relate to estimates for Trade and Export Development, and
I don’t see the relevance here at all. So please move on from this line of
questioning.
Kim Breckner: — The relevance is that money is being paid
to this ministry to attract investment. Now the taxpayers are obliged to know
whether that money is being put to good use to bring investment that will
benefit the province or if it will not benefit the province by increasing power
rates for other users or other arrangements that might have a detrimental
effect to the taxpayers. And so I have asked for clarity on that question.
Do you know
the rates that they will be getting power from from SaskPower?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — No.
Kim Breckner: — Similarly do you know if that will be
paying the capital costs of hooking up to the power grid?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: — No.
Chair D.
Harrison: — I’m going to
remind the member again. The relevance of the questions should relate to the
estimates for Trade and Export Development, not the estimates for CIC.
[22:15]
Kim Breckner: — I think I explained the relevance.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Please ensure it does relate to the
estimates for Trade and Export Development.
Kim Breckner: — How’s the progress
going on your work as leader amongst the provinces on interprovincial trade
with respect to direct-to-consumer alcohol sales? I understand that that
framework was expected for May of this year.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So we’ve been working on this since, I guess, I became Trade minister in early
2025, was when we started meeting on a very regular basis with our
interprovincial trade ministers. And we know from first ministers this is a
priority, that we need to advance things forward. Certainly direct-to-consumer
is one of the many items that we need to move forward on. Certainly mutual
recognition of goods and services is one. Labour mobility. There’s a number of
regulatory things that we’ve been able to create some pilots on and get some
movement on.
But I guess with direct-to-consumer
alcohol sales, Saskatchewan is actually the co-lead on this file with Ontario.
And we’ve imposed some deadlines on ourselves, but what we’ve been able to
accomplish is a number of MOUs that actually includes direct-to-consumer
alcohol sales in. That will help facilitate I guess getting to a point where
we’ve got an agreement as to what that’s going to look like.
What we are finding in the
direct-to-consumer alcohol side is that each province wants to treat it a
little differently. So what we’re seeing is provinces treating markups in a
different way; some actually saying they don’t want to include markups; some that
are, you know, looking at the administration of it, just wondering how they’re
going to deal with that. But we’ve got a deadline that by the end of May of
2026 that we actually want to have something in place for Saskatchewan when it
comes to direct-to-consumer alcohol sales.
Just fun fact actually: Saskatchewan has
been in a direct-to-consumer bilateral with British Columbia and has been since
2016. Hasn’t been well utilized because ultimately, as the other hat that I
wear, Sask Liquor and Gaming has done a very exceptional job of being able to
facilitate orders and opportunities with the unique orders that they may get
from the vineyards or select crafters out there. And they’re able to take the
risk away from it. They’re able to take the, you know, the hassle and the administration
away. And so Sask Liquor and Gaming has actually done a very good job in
facilitating a lot of that movement of speciality alcohol.
But saying that, we know that there is
going to be those that want to do this themselves and we will provide them that
venue to do that.
Kim Breckner: — I was looking at
the list of trade irritants that the US posted in advance of the renegotiation
of USMCA [United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement] was that many provinces had
removed US liquor from the shelves. I would say, if I am recalling correctly,
it was all but Saskatchewan and Alberta.
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
The decision behind where we ended up with American-based alcohol was
recognition of a few factors, one of them being that the US is our biggest
trading partner and always will be our biggest trading partner.
And one of the issues that the US has
identified, and I think you’ve identified it as well, is that removing American
alcohol off the shelves is a significant trade irritant. And that’s just one
thing that we do not need to antagonize one of our best trading partners with,
is over a factor that ultimately a decision can be made, and we’ll just let the
citizens of Saskatchewan determine whether that’s important to them or not.
But to us as a province, as a government
working on international trade, recognizing that this is an issue with the US
as well as, you know, we’re continuing to have these discussions on a regular
basis with American political leadership, this is not one thing that we needed
to have as a list of issues that they need to bring up in reducing trade
opportunities with them.
Kim Breckner: — The discussions
tonight have been really enlightening. I think I perhaps misunderstood what
happens when a deal is brought forward to the various ministries in the
province. For example, I had asked questions about what you had suggested were
SaskPower questions that you were unaware of the answers to.
So
I guess my question is, if you’re not looking at things like what kind of power
consumption an investment might have and if that would be detrimental to the
province, what kind of due diligence does your ministry do before bringing
potential investments forward?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Well I’ll maybe start off by saying, you know, what we’re doing is working.
Again go back to the 60 and 60. I think it’s a great indication of the work
that this team is doing in attracting opportunities for this province.
And we’re very proud of the fact — and
it’s actually recognized internationally — that what we provide through Trade
and Export Development is concierge service. That means that we will understand
what the proponent wants to do, get the basic understanding of what their
business plan is. What are their objectives? What do they want to achieve
coming here to the province?
So we do a significant amount of
background research. Ultimately we are involved in pathfinding and just
understanding what their basic requirements may be. Do they need a significant
tract of land? Do they need it inside an urban area? Is it fine if it’s in a
rural area? You know, what’s the capital requirements? What are the labour
requirements? What are they going to need for utilities?
And then ultimately, once we get a good
understanding of what that project is about, then we connect them with the
appropriate authorities to have those discussions and negotiations. And in most
situations those are confidential discussions that are held — whether it’s
utilities, it’s a municipality, it’s the entities that they’re negotiating with
— and that’s totally up to them to have those confidential conversations. What
we’ve done our job is to bring them here and to understand what the needs are, to
make sure that they’re in front of all the appropriate authorities and that
they’re able to have conversations and discussions in the most timely manner
possible.
[22:30]
And again, like I say, that is
recognized literally around the world. The abilities that this province offers,
the opportunities that this province offers to various projects. We’re not the
regulatory body. We’re not a body of authority. Those are all other entities
that they . . . We will make sure they get in front of the right
authorities or the right regulators to ensure that they have a good
understanding of what this project is about. So whether it’s an environmental
assessment or it’s a nuclear certification or, you know, it’s an emissions
factor or it’s a matter of hooking up to utilities, we get them to where they
need to be and then they have those discussions. That’s what businesses do.
Kim Breckner: — Are we not done at
10:30? Because I’ll keep asking questions.
Chair
D. Harrison: — No, we go until 10:39.
Kim Breckner: — Oh, okay. Now
you’ve got me shook. Okay. What’s a fun closing topic? When did you engage
Harper & Associates in discussions about signing a contract with them? Was
the Conflict of Interest Commissioner consulted at any point?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
So we first contracted with Prime Minister Harper in 2019 and then re-upped
that in ’22, and then ’24, and then in ’26.
I guess just trying to understand the
role that the Saskatchewan Conflict of Interest Commissioner would play in
that, because he’s never served in government or had any responsible position
within government in Saskatchewan. So I don’t think there’s any relevance in
the Conflict of Interest Commissioner’s engagement there.
But I will say that Prime Minister
Stephen Harper has provided us incredible value for the investment that we’ve
made in him. And I just use the simple rate of return of that $2.6 billion
contract that Cameco was able to sign with the Government of India was
certainly helped and facilitated by Prime Minister Harper and his ongoing
engagement with India. He has remarkable respect by Indian leadership, and has
for the entire time that he’s been engaging with India. And it was because of
him that certainly helped facilitate that uranium agreement.
And so that’s just one example — but
it’s a fairly significant example — of the value that he brings to us as
government. I’ve had the opportunity to engage with him in a number of times.
And just his perspective of the, you know, major trading partners that, when he
was prime minister, that he actually had some significant trade agreements
with, that level of knowledge and background in those key markets has been
invaluable to us.
And I would say even, you know, his
understanding of the Indian market, the ASEAN area, has been very valuable to
us to fine-tune our approach to how we’re getting into key markets in those
areas. So yes, the contract we’ve had with Prime Minister Harper has been very
valuable to us and has been a great return.
Kim Breckner: — Just to clarify,
so you didn’t believe a conflict to exist, so you didn’t consult with the
Conflict of Interest Commissioner because you felt there was no need?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Well that would be his responsibility ultimately to engage with the Conflict of
Interest Commissioner if he felt that it was relevant. But the Conflict of
Interest Commissioner in Saskatchewan deals with those matters that are dealing
directly with those involved with the Saskatchewan government and that are part
of the Saskatchewan government. So no, there would be no relationship to him
having a conflict of interest with the Government of Saskatchewan.
Kim Breckner: — And you talk about
his utility in some of these trade missions. Was former Prime Minister Harper
or any of his associates . . . did they accompany government
employees on trade missions?
Jodi Banks:
— Thank you for the question. So I would say that when we would be on certain
missions, we would have our missions intersect. And so particularly in places
like India, he may join for, you know, one day or a day and a half out of a
five-day mission, but has ensured that we have some of the meetings with
high-level government or industry and has helped do some of that in advance, as
well as at times attend some of those key meetings.
In India that meant that even when, you
know, the Canadian federal government’s relationship with India was poor, that
we were able to maintain our relationship and ensure that we could keep those
doors open for Saskatchewan exports.
Kim Breckner: — Thank you. And
were their expenses compensated by the provincial government? Or did they come
out of the 240,000 that was paid annually?
Jodi Banks:
— They came out of the contract money. We didn’t provide any additional expense
dollars.
Kim Breckner: — Thank you. Another
trade irritant that was mentioned was supply management. What’s this
government’s position on supply management?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
I think we’ve quite often stated that the federal government is the ones
responsible for trade deals. But our input into those trade deals is that we
need this to be good. Every trade deal needs to be good for all of Canada.
Because when all of Canada benefits, we benefit. Saying that, you know, we
don’t believe that one part or one sector of Canada should influence or
negatively affect another part of Canada.
So I would say right now our trade
negotiators, we’ve had the opportunities to meet and engage with them. And we
certainly let them know as to what our priorities are here in Saskatchewan and
that certainly the ag sector is very, very important in these trade deals. And
we’re going to do whatever we can to support the ag sector in getting the best
deal possible out there and not compromising the critical minerals sector or
the fertilizer sector or the fuel sector or anything else. Just always keeping
in mind that our input to our federal negotiators is that they need to get the
best deal that will support all of Canada.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Having reached our agreed-upon time for
consideration of these estimates, we will now adjourn consideration of the 2026‑2027
estimates for the Ministry of Trade and Export Development. Minister Kaeding,
do you have any closing comments?
Hon. Warren
Kaeding: —
Well thank you, Mr. Chair. And I think we’ve talked extensively on the
opportunities that we are currently experiencing and that we are going to be
looking at into the future, and they are immense. They are incredible in both
the established markets and those that we see are going to be evolving and
developing in front of us.
And I tell you, there’s no better group
of people to be able to serve this province than what we’ve got sitting behind
me and what are in the offices supporting them. Because ultimately if we don’t
have business successful here in the province, we don’t have the opportunity to
provide the services that we know all the people of this province are
expecting. And I would say these folks in the last . . . since 2020.
We talked about the 60 in 60. It’s the responsibility of the people behind me
here who have been able to do the work in making sure that Saskatchewan is
known across the world as to the opportunities that we have here.
And I tell you, we’ve only just started.
We’ve got so many incredible opportunities in front of us as we are dealing
with the new world dynamics. We are in such a great position to be able to take
advantage of that, and I would say it’s because of the work and the diligence
and the commitment that we’ve got from our folks in Trade and Export
Development. And I would say that extends out even out into entities like STEP
and those that are doing all the business-to-business relationships as well.
I can’t wait for what the future of this
province is going to hold. I look at the growth plan that we’ve had, our 2030
growth plan where we’ve already blown through a number of those items in there
because of the work of the investment attraction group and the business
attraction group, the business development group that is here in Trade and
Export Development. And I appreciate their efforts each and every day because
it just makes our province that much better.
I appreciate the input by committee. I
certainly appreciate Hansard and all the folks involved with Hansard.
And yeah, I look forward to getting up each and every day for the new
opportunities that we see out there.
Chair
D. Harrison: — Thank you, Minister. MLA Breckner, do
you have any closing comments?
Kim Breckner: — Thank you, Chair.
Yes, I would like to thank the officials here tonight for their work in
preparing for estimates, also the hard work that they do year-round. It’s much
appreciated by everyone in this province. And thank you to the legislative
staff here tonight and to my fellow committee members for being present.
Chair
D. Harrison: — All right. Thank you to the minister
and his officials for coming in here and staying late this evening. Much
appreciated. Thanks to the committee for doing the same as well. Also thank you
to the Clerks that have been in attendance here tonight and to Hansard
for doing their fabulous job as always.
It now being past 10:30, this committee
stands adjourned until Tuesday, April 21st, 2026 at 3:30 p.m.
[The committee adjourned at 22:44.]
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under the authority of the Hon. Todd Goudy, Speaker
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