Saskatchewan Petroleum Innovation Incentive (SPII)
Program Update: A five-year extension to SPII was announced as part of Budget 2024-25. Project applications will be accepted until March 31, 2029. SPII also received a funding cap increase from $30 million to $100 million over the life of the program. This funding cap will be shared by SPII and the newly announced Saskatchewan Critical Minerals Innovation Incentive (SCMII). Helium and lithium eligibility has been transferred to SCMII. For any new helium or lithium innovation projects, please reference SCMII for details and application instructions.
The Saskatchewan Petroleum Innovation Incentive (SPII) offers transferable Crown royalty and freehold production tax credits for qualified innovation commercialization projects at a rate of 25 per cent of eligible project costs. The program targets a broad range of innovations deployed across all segments of Saskatchewan’s oil and gas industry.
The SPII program is open to both pilot projects and commercial scaling projects – giving applicants the ability to test their innovations in a pilot setting then deploy them at larger commercial scales. In addition, projects executed on multiple sites and projects that include multiple phases may be considered eligible for the program under a single project application.
SPII is administered by the Ministry of Energy and Resources.
1. Benefits
- SPII’s one-of-a-kind design makes it one of the most flexible and usable oil and gas innovation commercialization incentives in North America. When undertaking an innovative pilot, market validation or commercial scaling project across any segment of Saskatchewan’s oil and gas industry, eligible projects have the ability to redeem 25 per cent of their eligible capital and operating costs. These credit redemptions can even occur during the construction and operational phases of a project to help improve a company’s cash flow.
- The credits are fully transferable, which gives non-producers/non-royalty payers an opportunity to benefit from the program, because they have the ability to transfer credits to oil, gas and helium Crown royalty and freehold production tax payers. Also, SPII encourages multi-company projects as costs can be incurred by a firm other than the principal applicant.
- SPII has a project-specific awarded credit cap of CAD$5 million (i.e., a maximum of up to CAD$20 million in recognized eligible costs per project).
- SPII can be used alongside other incentive and grant programs available in Saskatchewan.
2. Eligibility
- Eligible Innovation – In order for a product, service, process, or operation to be considered an eligible innovation, it must be assessed at a minimum of Level 7 on the SPII Technology Readiness Level Scale. If it satisfies the SPII Technology Readiness Level, the innovation must also satisfy one of the following criteria:
- The project can clearly be demonstrated to be new to Saskatchewan’s oil and gas industry. This means an innovation must be the first-of-its-kind in Saskatchewan’s oil and gas industry or it must be a significant advancement on the current state of the art in terms of concept, function or design, relative to other similar innovations deployed in Saskatchewan’s oil and gas industry.
- The eligible project can be clearly demonstrated to be at a new and significantly different commercial scale that has no technical equivalent in Saskatchewan’s oil and gas industry. The eligible project also possesses unique features and/or benefits that offer significant differentiation from current competitive offering in the Saskatchewan marketplace, and the project itself poses new and significant technical challenges as a result of deploying the innovation at this unmatched scale.
- Eligible Activity – the eligible innovation must be applied in a project of which the aim is:
- To improve oil and gas recovery;
- To manage adverse environmental impacts;
- To increase value-added processing capacity; or
- To commercialize oil and gas production byproducts or waste.
- Eligible Costs – the eligible project must involve a minimum of CAD$1 million in eligible capital and operating costs.
- The project must not be commercially operational prior to submitting an application to the Ministry of Energy and Resources.
3. How to Apply
To apply for the SPII program, companies must complete and submit the SPII Application Form. If you have questions about the application process, refer to the SPII Program Overview and Application Instructions or contact spii@gov.sk.ca. Completed SPII Application Forms may be submitted to the Ministry of Energy and Resources via spii@gov.sk.ca.
The Ministry of Energy and Resources will be accepting applications from July 8, 2019, to March 31, 2029.
5. Further Information
For additional information on the program, contact spii@gov.sk.ca.
News Releases:
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- Government of Saskatchewan Launches Helium Action Plan
- Strengthening Saskatchewan's Lithium Industry