The Alberta government is investing $21 million over the next decade to help local technology and manufacturing companies break into Canada’s growing defence and military markets.
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The funding will anchor a new $127-million initiative called the Dual-Use Ecosystem for Future Engineering, National Defence and Sovereignty (DEFENDS). Led by the University of Alberta, the program aims to help provincial companies test, certify and commercialize advanced technologies for defence use.
Provincial officials say many Alberta businesses already manufacture high-tech equipment for the energy and construction sectors, but lack a clear path to secure lucrative military contracts.
“Alberta companies already build some of the best technology in the country, they just haven’t had a streamlined path into defence markets,” Nate Glubish, minister of technology and innovation, said on May 19. “DEFENDS changes that.”
The initiative will build three secure facilities in the province to test advanced manufacturing components, microchips, communication networks and radar systems against real-world threats.
The program will operate under a “Team Alberta” approach, partnering with the University of Calgary, the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology and various rural colleges to provide specialized job training.
Provincial ministers say the program is designed to keep patents, ideas and profits within the province. Over the next 10 years, the initiative is projected to support more than 200 local companies, create 8,000 jobs and generate an estimated $7 billion in gross domestic product growth.
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