Hydro-Quebec’s partnership with Mitacs recognized with Innovation Award

Hydro-Quebec was recognized as Canadian Enterprise Innovator of the Year as part of the Mitacs Innovation Awards, held at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa on November 17.

Mitacs is an organization focused on co-funding business-academic research collaboration through internships for undergraduate to graduate students and post-doctoral fellows, with Hydro-Quebec co-funding more than 1,600 internships with Mitacs over the past five years, with the majority hosted through its Institut de Recherche d’Hydro-Quebec (IREQ) research hub.

Mitacs programs are supported by funding from the Government of Canada, the Government of Quebec, and other provincial and territorial governments across the country.

“Through this collaboration, we not only strengthen our leadership in clean energy, but also invest in the next generation of Canadian researchers whose cutting-edge work is helping to answer some of the most pressing challenges of our time,” said Christian Bélanger, Hydro-Quebec’s senior director for research and innovation.

Projects that are currently part of this collaboration include a multi-year research initiative on prolonging the longevity of hydroelectric infrastructure, research on integrating renewables into existing grid infrastructure, and digital tools for optimizing maintenance and asset management for smart electrical grids.