May 18, 2006

More than 10 per cent of provincial vehicles are now environmentally friendly and initiatives to promote green transportation options will ensure the percentage of green government vehicles continues to grow, Transportation and Government Services Minister Ron Lemieux announced today.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Sustainable Transportation Initiatives

• The province is currently operating an E85 fuel station in Winnipeg under a joint provincial-federal initiative to provide the high ethanol content gas for local vehicles operated by the Canadian and Manitoba governments.
• Manitoba provided $500,000 to establish the Centre for Sustainable Transportation at the University of Winnipeg.
• The province participated in cold-weather testing of hybrid hydrogen internal combustion engine technology.
• Manitoba supported technology training through sponsorship of the Red River Raycer solar car project for competition in the world’s longest international alternative-fuel event.

• The Ethanol Advisory Board and the plan to require the use of ethanol blends in gasoline sold in the province were announced in the April 2002 budget.
• The Biofuels Act passed in December 2003 requires a 10-per-cent blend of ethanol in 85 per cent of the gasoline sold in Manitoba and outlines an incentive in the form of a tax reduction for using ethanol produced in the province.
• The Biofuels Act will be proclaimed when there is sufficient ethanol production capacity in the province to meet the demand of a 10-per-cent blend.
• Husky Energy has announced that it will construct a 130-million-litre plant at Minnedosa to replace the current facility with $10.4 million in support under the Federal Ethanol Expansion Program for the new plant.
• The cost of the new Husky Energy plant has been estimated at $145 million and is expected to employ 35 full-time staff on an ongoing basis. The plant will require 350,000 tonnes per year of locally-grown wheat and will produce approximately 125,000 tonnes per year of distillers dried grains for livestock feed.
• Husky Energy donated $1 million for the purpose of establishing the Husky Biofuel Research Fund with the University of Manitoba.
• Manitoba has a number of advantages for ethanol production including feedstock availability, competitive business costs and proximity to other markets.

• One of the recommendations of the Ethanol Advisory Panel was for the province to investigate the use of other biofuels such as biodiesel.
• The Biodiesel Council, formed in 2003, conducted industry and stakeholder consultations which led to the development of a 10-point strategy for biodiesel development in Manitoba.
• The strategy included financial support for the establishment of community-based biodiesel production facilities located around the province, the establishment of local fuel testing and the development of regional blending and storage facilities.
• Federal financial support for these programs had been obtained from Natural Resources Canada.
• Nine proponents of these regional biodiesel production plants have identified their interest in applying for this support which could boost annual production capacity in the range of five to 10 million litres.
• The 2006 budget also announced the elimination of the 11.5-cent-per-litre road tax for the biodiesel portion of any diesel/biodiesel blends.

• A mandated 10-per-cent blend of ethanol in the gasoline sold in Manitoba will reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 135,000 tonnes per year which is equivalent to taking 10,000 vehicles off the road.
• A 10-per-cent blend of ethanol in gasoline will reduce carbon monoxide from the tailpipe by up to 25 per cent. It will also reduce particulate emissions from between 25 and 32 per cent depending upon the vehicle.
• Ethanol made in Manitoba will result in 44 per cent more energy gained than is required to produce it.
• Ethanol and distillers grain will replace imports of gasoline and high-protein livestock feed supplements resulting in a reduced financial outflow from the province of $65 million to $70 million.
• The production of ethanol will have a positive incremental impact on annual farm net income due to higher feed-wheat prices and the reduced cost of high-protein feed supplements.
• As a fuel, ethanol is an efficient solvent as well as a natural form of gas-line antifreeze.

• The environmental benefits of a 20-per-cent blend of biodiesel in petroleum diesel include a 10.1-per-cent reduction in particulate matter, an 11-per-cent reduction in carbon monoxide and a reduction of overall hydrocarbon emissions of 21.1 per cent.
• A 20-per-cent blend of biodiesel in petroleum diesel will also reduce total GHG emissions by 18.1 per cent.
• The cetane number is a measure of the ignition quality of diesel fuel and higher cetane number fuels like biodiesel provide better performance for emissions, noise and cold white smoke generation.
• The excellent lubricity properties of biodiesel added to petroleum diesel will help to address potential problems associated with the introduction of low-sulphur diesel fuels.
• The production of biodiesel from oilseeds has the potential to increase the price for oilseed crops while stabilizing the market.