Canada Has Proposed Changes to Its Clean Fuel Regulations. Here Is What They Mean for Forklift Fleets.

Canada's Clean Fuel Regulations (CFR) are entering their next chapter. Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) released proposed amendments on October 27, and they were published in the Canada Gazette, Part I, at the end of October for public comment. For fleets that charge electric forklifts in Canada, the program that rewards that charging is active, growing, and being actively refined.

What is being updated

The government announced its plan to amend the CFR in September 2025 and released a discussion paper in December 2025. Public comments closed in January 2026. The amendments are described as "targeted," meaning they focus on a specific goal: supporting Canadian-made low-carbon fuel production.

The discussion paper laid out two main options:

• A minimum domestic content requirement, which would require a share of gasoline and diesel obligations to be met with Canadian-made low-carbon fuel.
• A credit multiplier, which would create more credits per litre for domestic fuel.

ECCC chose the credit multiplier. Under the proposal, eligible low-carbon fuels produced in Canada would earn extra credits, with effective multipliers ranging from 1.3 for ethanol to 1.8 for sustainable aviation fuel. There is no domestic content requirement, and as drafted, the multiplier would apply starting with the 2026 compliance year. Ethanol producers and farm groups had asked for at least 1.4 for Canadian-made ethanol and have said 1.3 falls short.

The multiplier covers liquid fuels such as ethanol, biodiesel, renewable diesel, and sustainable aviation fuel, plus some Canadian-made gaseous fuels, such as renewable natural gas and hydrogen used in vehicles.

Electricity stays in the picture

The proposal is aimed at low-carbon fuel producers, and the multiplier does not apply to electricity. Electricity supplied to electric vehicles, including forklifts, remains an established credit source under the regulations, and charging that is measured at the charger can earn credits today.

That matters because the CFR is built to last. Requirements increase each year through 2030, and ECCC has said a broader review beginning in 2027 will set requirements for the years after 2030. An ECCC official has also said the program is meeting expectations. A regulation with a long runway and active attention from the government is a strong foundation for the businesses that generate credits under it.

How Canadian forklift credits work

Canada's program runs on a calendar year. Electricity used by forklift chargers from January 1 to December 31 is reported in the first months of the following year, credits are created around May, and customers are typically paid once a year, around May to June.

The CFR requires the energy to be measured by the charging station, so Remote Energy Monitors (REMs) in Canada are installed on the DC output of the charger. Each REM measures current and voltage in real time and sends the data to the Anvil platform, which supports credit reporting. Installation takes about 10 minutes per REM with basic hand tools.

Because Canada's cycle is annual, every month of charging data counts toward the year's total, and a fleet that starts measuring early captures more of the year. For British Columbia sites, forklifts earn under the CFR like anywhere else in Canada.

One fleet, several markets

Many cold storage and distribution companies operate across borders. Anvil supports fleets in California, Oregon, Washington, New Mexico, and Canada, and Hawaii's new Clean Fuel Standard is on its way as rules are written (it is not on our website yet, but it is part of our coverage). You can see where we operate on our markets page. One platform and one monitor type let a multi-site operator handle every program the same way.

What to watch next

Three milestones are worth tracking: the close of the public comment period on January 14, 2027, publication of the final amendments in the Canada Gazette, Part II, and the CFR review that ECCC says will start in 2027. We will cover each as it lands.

The takeaway

Canada is investing in its clean fuel program, and the pending amendments show a regulation that keeps getting sharper. For electric forklift fleets, the opportunity is simple: measure your charging, report it, and earn credits from energy you already use.

Curious what your Canadian sites could earn? Our free forklift revenue estimator gives you a custom estimate based on your charger count and location, or contact our team to get a quote.