Regulatory co-operation on Low Carbon Fuels in transportation

Working to align and develop Codes and Standards with the U.S.

Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) and the U.S. Department of Energy (USDOE) have published a Regulatory Partnership Statement and Annual Work Plan as part of a commitment to foster greater cross-border natural gas vehicle deployment by supporting the alignment of existing codes and standards; and, co-developing new binational codes and standards ^{Footnote 1}. The initiative falls under the Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) whose 2014 Joint Forward Plan commits government departments to develop and publish these documents.

Regulatory Partnership Statement

The NRCan-USDOE Regulatory Partnership Statement formalizes the relationship between the two departments. It defines the scope of cooperation, identifies the senior executives who will manage the Statement and specifies annual joint meetings where stakeholders can provide input and Work Plans can be approved.

Annual Work Plan

The first NRCan-USDOE Annual Work Plan for natural gas use in transportation describes three broad activity areas: development of new standards; further alignment of existing codes; and engagement with relevant regulators to discuss regulatory variances. It will be updated annually through ongoing consultation with stakeholders and annual meetings.

The second NRCan-USDOE Annual Work Plan continues the work on natural gas use in transportation, in three broad activity areas: standards development and revision; code development and revision; regulatory variances. The scope of the work plan has also been expanded to include other market ready alternative fuels for transportation (e.g. hydrogen, electricity, propane, etc.).

The third NRCan-USDOE Work-plan continues work on standards development and revision; code development and revision; and regulatory variances for all low carbon fuels (electric, hydrogen, natural gas, and propane) and has a broader scope to address advancements in technologies and infrastructure, and additional modes of transportation (on-road, marine, rail, and multi-modal transportation applications).

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