Ekstera Secures $1M in Non-Dilutive Phase 2 Funding from Innovative Solutions Canada
Toronto, ON – July 2, 2026 – Ekstera is proud to announce it has been awarded $1 million in Phase 2 funding through the Innovative Solutions Canada (ISC) Low-Carbon Construction Materials Challenge. The funding will be used to advance the company's patented Stirling engine generators, which provide a scalable and high-efficiency solution for converting industrial waste heat into carbon-free electricity.
Steel and cement production rely heavily on electricity and generate abundant waste heat that is currently discarded into the atmosphere. While the steel industry has been electrifying to reduce its footprint, local electrical grids are struggling to meet a rapidly expanding demand for electricity with low-carbon sources, causing facilities to rely on carbon-intensive natural gas or on-site diesel generators. Ekstera’s innovative technology bridges this gap by producing clean electricity on-site using available waste heat, which reduces the embodied carbon of the steel produced. Because the waste heat fuel source is readily available at no cost, the system delivers substantial financial savings to industrial users alongside immediate carbon emission reductions.
Building on a successful Phase 1 project, where Ekstera built and tested a pilot-scale Stirling engine, this Phase 2 project will advance the technology further by scaling up the technology and field-testing modular units at Gerdau’s steel mill in Cambridge, Ontario.
"Successful completion of Phase 2 will establish the technical, economic, and operational evidence needed for commercial adoption across steel mills and other industrial facilities in Canada," said Brendan MacDonald, Ekstera’s CEO.
Ekstera’s Made in Canada technology can provide the clean, affordable, and reliable electricity that is so badly needed right now to keep up with electrification. Waste heat is a valuable energy resource and Ekstera can finally harness the value in it with their technology at the scales that are needed. By converting industrial waste heat into electricity they can address all three pillars of the energy crisis: affordability, security, and climate.
Ultimately, this project will support national goals for lower-carbon construction materials, strengthen Canada’s clean-technology manufacturing capabilities and clean electricity production capacity, and enhance the global competitiveness of Canada's steel industry.
About Ekstera
Ekstera is a Canadian hardware and energy technology company dedicated to developing innovative Stirling engine technology to convert industrial waste heat into clean electricity. Ekstera is committed to providing cost-effective, scalable, and rapidly deployable electricity generation to decarbonize and reduce costs for heavy industry.
