The Government of Canada will host the inaugural Canada Investment Summit on September 14 and 15, 2026, in Toronto. The Summit is intended to convene the world’s largest investors, including leading CEOs, entrepreneurs and global business leaders around new investment in Canada.
The Summit focuses on nation-building projects and related opportunities across defence, major infrastructure, Indigenous partnerships, technology, energy, critical minerals and food and agricultural resilience.
The Prime Minister’s Apr. 17, 2026, announcement positions the Summit within a broader plan to catalyze $1 trillion in total investment over five years, create new career opportunities for Canadians, support economic growth and strengthen Canada’s economic resilience. The government’s case to investors rests on Canada’s energy and natural-resource base, skilled workforce, fiscal position and preferential access to approximately 1.5 billion consumers through 16 free trade agreements covering 51 countries.
This bulletin explains the federal measures shaping the Summit’s investment agenda and highlights the key legal and regulatory issues businesses and investors should consider when assessing Summit-related opportunities.
For broader context, BLG’s Doing Business in Canada guide outlines the Canadian legal and regulatory environment in which these opportunities will develop.
Federal measures shaping the Summit’s investment agenda
Several recent federal measures show how the government is supporting the Summit’s investment agenda across priority sectors. Canada has secured more than 20 new economic and defence partnerships and approximately $97 billion in foreign investment commitments since September 2025. At the same time, the Productivity Super-Deduction is intended to improve investment competitiveness, while the federal trade-diversification plan seeks to reduce reliance on a limited number of export markets. Together, these measures raise practical tax and structuring considerations, including the need to address tax issues early in project planning.
Foreign investors should also assess the Investment Canada Act early in transaction planning. This is particularly important where investments involve sectors such as critical minerals, defence, artificial intelligence (AI), or infrastructure, which may attract national security scrutiny regardless of transaction value or whether the investor acquires control. In practice, review timelines, filing obligations and potential conditions or remedial orders should be built into deal structure, financing and closing arrangements.
BLG’s Foreign investment in Canada: Understand the review process explains the review framework in greater detail.
Defence Industrial Strategy: building domestic capability
Security, Sovereignty and Prosperity: Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy seeks to strengthen domestic defence capacity, reform procurement and support Canadian suppliers. It includes $6.6 billion over five years for industry and a Build-Partner-Buy framework focused on aerospace, munitions, AI and digital systems, space and uncrewed systems. Accordingly, suppliers should consider security clearances, controlled-goods compliance, supply-chain provenance, intellectual property terms and procurement eligibility, not only technical capability.
BLG’s Bill C-31 proposes major Defence Production Act changes affecting Canadian defence procurement examines related legislative changes affecting Canadian defence procurement.
Major Projects Office: accelerating nation-building projects
The Major Projects Office currently supports 18 projects and nine transformative strategies representing approximately $192 billion in new investment. Although the office coordinates federal decision-making and addresses policy and financing barriers, it does not replace statutory approvals or the Crown’s duty to consult. As a result, proponents should determine early whether a project meets the criteria under the Building Canada Act and map the provincial requirements, consultation path, permitting sequence and financing milestones needed to move the project forward.
BLG’s Fast-tracking Canada’s future: Recent projects announced by the Major Projects Office provides further context on the referred projects and their implications.
Indigenous partnerships and project development
Meaningful engagement with Indigenous Peoples is central to major project development in Canada. The Crown’s duty to consult is embedded across regulatory requirements, permitting and procurement processes, driving expectations and informing project design, approvals and financing. Projects with well-developed approaches to execution with partnerships in mind are expected to have better outcomes. The federal Indigenous Loan Guarantee Program and comparable provincial programs are designed to support Indigenous equity participation and access to capital. We recommend that structuring considerations be addressed early in diligence, financing and governance documents.
As discussed in BLG’s From mineral tenures to nuclear projects: The evolving role of UNDRIP in Canadian domestic law, consultation standards and regulatory decision-making continue to evolve, making early engagement critical to project design and execution.
Technology, AI and advanced manufacturing
Canada’s National Artificial Intelligence Strategy: AI for All and Canada’s Automotive Strategy direct support toward AI adoption and infrastructure, domestic manufacturing, battery technology, automation and advanced components. For organizations seeking public funding or procurement opportunities, data sovereignty, privacy, cybersecurity, intellectual property, supply-chain origin and skilled-labour requirements should be addressed at the design stage because these issues can affect both eligibility and the commercial allocation of risk.
BLG’s Canada’s new AI for All strategy: A business outlook on AI governance, adoption, and data sovereignty and Canada’s new automotive strategy examine the practical implications for businesses in these sectors.
Energy and critical minerals
In the energy and critical minerals sectors, federal policy is being advanced through Powering Canada Strong: A National Strategy for an Electrified Canadian Economy and The Canadian Critical Minerals Strategy. The electricity strategy addresses generation and grid expansion, while the critical minerals strategy supports domestic mining, processing and refining.
BLG’s Canada’s new electricity strategy: Powering an electrified future by 2050 examines the implementation, jurisdictional, and financing issues associated with this agenda. Related funding tools, including the First and Last Mile Fund and planned Critical Minerals Sovereign Fund, may help address infrastructure and financing gaps. Even so, proponents will still need durable offtake arrangements and financing structures that account for construction and commodity-price risk.
Food and agricultural resilience
Food security engages a different investment and regulatory framework. The Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership supports capacity, competitiveness, climate resilience, market development, trade and innovation. Projects involving food production, processing, storage, or controlled-environment agriculture may face land-use, environmental, food-safety, labour, transportation and cold-chain constraints.
In that context, BLG’s When regulators shake hands: The CFIA-China food safety MOU illustrates how regulatory cooperation and food-safety requirements can affect agricultural market access. Funding eligibility should therefore be assessed alongside the approvals, trade requirements, and infrastructure needed to operate at scale.
BLG’s Canada Investment Leadership Forum
On Sept. 15, 2026, BLG will host the Canada Investment Leadership Forum in Toronto, in partnership with the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network and PwC Canada.
This private forum builds on the Government of Canada's Summit, focusing on how investment in Canada's priority sectors can move from policy ambition to executable projects.
The program will address opportunities across defence, automotive, advanced manufacturing, energy, critical minerals, and AI, with practical discussion of financing, investment risk, sovereign capability, and shovel-ready programs.
Review the agenda and current speaker lineup on the Canada Investment Leadership Forum event page.
This event features a curated guest list and capacity is strictly limited. Senior leaders and executives may express interest in attending the forum.
How BLG can help
BLG advises businesses, governments, and investors on major projects, project finance, tax incentives, defence procurement, Indigenous partnerships, trade and supply-chain matters, and institutional co-investment structures. Drawing on the sector-specific analysis referenced throughout this bulletin, we help clients assess project alignment with government priorities, map overlapping approvals, structure financing and partnerships, and advise on regulatory, tax, procurement, and delivery risk.
To discuss how the Summit may affect your organization or project, please contact any of the key contacts listed below.
