How much funding can be received?

Funds up to 100% of admissible expenses, capped at $1000000 per project.

What is the deadline to apply?

The deadline to apply is 2025-06-21T03:59:59Z.

Who are the financial supporters of the NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling?

NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling is funded by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan)

NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling

Q: What are NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling's eligibility criterias?

Applicants must be legal entities validly incorporated or registered in Canada, including for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, community groups, or Canadian academic institutions. Provincial, territorial, regional, and municipal governments and their departments and agencies are eligible. Indigenous communities, governments, tribal councils, national or regional Indigenous councils, and Indigenous organizations (majority owned and controlled by Indigenous people) are eligible recipients.

Last Update: July 22, 2025

Canada

Supporting national energy systems modelling for emission reductions

NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling at a glance

Eligible Funding

From $300,000 to $1,000,000
Up to 100% of project cost

Timeline

Open Date : March 20, 2025
Closing date : June 21, 2025

Financing Type

Grant and Funding

Eligible Industries

Utilities
Professional, scientific and technical services
Educational services

Grant Providers

Natural Resources Canada (NRCan)

Program status

Open

Overview of the NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling program

The National Energy Systems Modelling Call for Proposals, under Natural Resources Canada's Energy Innovation Program, offers funding of up to $1,000,000 over three years to support projects focused on quantitatively modelling Canada's energy system to achieve emissions reductions and support net-zero targets. Eligible activities include national-scale techno-economic and socio-technical analyses of energy systems, incorporating innovative technologies and practices.

Financing terms and conditions

This grant offers structured financing modalities to support diverse project needs while ensuring efficient resource distribution. The funding structures vary based on the type of project and level of accessibility of developed outputs.

Open-source projects may receive up to 100% of the total project cost, requesting between $300,000 and $1,000,000.
Proprietary projects can obtain funding up to 50% of the total project cost, with requests ranging from $300,000 to $500,000.
Eligible activities for reimbursement must take place between April 1, 2026, and March 31, 2029.
Support for stacking of funding is available up to 100% of the total project cost, with additional evaluation points for initiatives leveraging non-government sources.
Indigenous applicants are eligible for contributions covering up to 100% of the total project cost.
Funding disbursements are contingent on the execution of a contribution agreement.
In-kind contributions are recognized as a part of the total project cost though not directly reimbursable.
A formal due diligence process is required to validate financial, technical, legal, and regulatory compliance before finalizing contribution agreements.
Contribution agreements detail the terms related to the disposition of assets acquired with funding.
Contributions are non-repayable, provided they align with pre-commercial activity parameters.

Eligible projects & activities

The NRCAN National Energy Systems Modelling grant supports projects that aim to quantitatively model Canada's energy system to contribute to emission reductions and the country's net-zero targets. These projects focus on harnessing innovative technologies and practices to present transparent, updated energy models for the public and decision-makers.

Conducting national-scale techno-economic and/or socio-technical analyses to assess the role of innovative technologies in meeting climate objectives.
Creating new models or adapting existing ones to better address the limitations concerning technological innovations and their impacts.
Generating greenhouse gas and primary energy supply and demand projections up to at least 2070 across Canada with provincial granularity.
Ensuring project output data is accessible through online visualization platforms to foster transparency and public discourse.
Developing supporting reports, publications, and knowledge dissemination events alongside the visualization tools.
Enhancing existing models with parameters for emerging or currently underrepresented technologies.
Facilitating structural adjustments to enable the adoption of new technologies within current energy models.
Executing modelling exercises that consider parametric and structural changes based on defined research questions.
Making models and datasets publicly accessible by annotating data and tools before public release.

Eligibility criteria of the NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling program

Eligibility for this grant is extended to a variety of legal entities and organizations including Indigenous groups.

Legal entities validly incorporated or registered in Canada, including both for-profit and non-profit organizations.
Community groups organized within Canada.
Canadian academic institutions from across the nation.
Provincial, territorial, regional, and municipal governments including their departments and agencies.
Indigenous entities including Indigenous communities or governments, Tribal Councils or similar entities, and national or regional Indigenous councils or tribal organizations.
Organizations majority owned and controlled by Indigenous people, whether for-profit or non-profit.

Who is eligible?

Eligible Canadian recipients include legal entities such as for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, community groups, Canadian academic institutions, as well as provincial, territorial, regional, and municipal governments and their departments and agencies where applicable. Indigenous communities or governments, tribal councils, national or regional Indigenous councils, tribal organizations, and Indigenous majority-owned and controlled for-profit or not-for-profit organizations are also eligible. The term 'Indigenous' includes Inuit, Métis, First Nation, Status Indian, and non-Status Indian individuals or any combination thereof.

Eligible expenses

The grant covers specific expenses directly related to the implementation and success of the project.

Salaries and benefits for employees on the payroll of the Recipient for the actual time spent by the employees on the project.
Training and workshops.
Professional, scientific, technical and contracting services.
Travel expenditures, including meals and accommodation, based on National Joint Council Rates, adjusted to reflect costs in Northern and remote areas.
Capital expenditures such as the purchase, installation, testing and commissioning of qualifying equipment, materials and products, including diagnostic, testing tools and instruments, and original equipment manufacturer equipment warranty (including extended warranties where appropriate to mitigate risk and lack of capacity).
Other expenses including laboratory and field supplies, printing services, data collection services, facility costs, construction insurance, accreditation, license fees and permits, honoraria, training, and field testing services.
Overhead expenditures directly related to the project and limited to a maximum of 15% of eligible expenditures, including administrative and corporate support, routine laboratory maintenance, office operating expenses, and further distribution of funding.
GST, PST or HST, net of any tax rebate to which the Recipient is entitled.

Eligible geographic areas

This grant is open to eligible Canadian recipients with a focus on benefiting projects within Canada. Projects must have significant tangible benefits to Canada, with preference given to those taking place in the country.

Canada

Eligibility criteria of the NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling program

The evaluation and selection of projects under the National Energy Systems Modelling Call for Proposals involve assessing the strength and relevance of the project in relation to the call’s specific objectives, focusing on its potential to innovate in Canada's energy system modelling.

Strength and clarity of the research question(s) and their potential to address gaps in current modelling.
Robustness of the modelling approach, including the quality of quantitative analysis and its capability to simulate technological innovations.
Potential impact on Canada's national climate objectives through emissions reduction and support for net-zero targets.
Accessibility and transparency of project data, including plans for making output data and models publicly available.
Integration of inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA) principles within the project framework.
Quality and strength of partnerships, including contributions from partners and collaborations with federal laboratories.
Alignment of the project with federal priorities, such as regional balance and socio-economic considerations.

How to apply to the NRCAN — National Energy Systems Modelling program

Expression of Interest (EOI) Submission

Determine your eligibility by reviewing the Applicant Guide.
Complete and submit the Expression of Interest (EOI) via the Applicant Portal by the specified deadline.
The EOI will be reviewed by the Technical and Investment Review Committees.
Await notification from NRCan regarding the EOI evaluation results.

Full Project Proposal (FPP) Submission (Invited Applicants Only)

If invited, complete and submit a Full Project Proposal (FPP).
Ensure all mandatory information is provided to be considered for funding.
Full Project Proposals will be reviewed by the Technical and Investment Review Committees.

Due Diligence Assessment

Undergo a due diligence assessment if selected for funding, which covers financial, technical, legal, and regulatory components.
Provide all necessary documentation and complete a detailed budget and statement of work template.

Contribution Agreement

Draft and sign a contribution agreement with NRCan, contingent upon passing the due diligence assessment.
Understand that no financial commitment exists until the agreement is signed by both parties.