Long-term strategy calls for up to 10 new reactors in Canada

Canada has launched a Nuclear Energy Strategy, a long-term vision of its nuclear power potential that includes plans to deploy up to 10 new large-scale reactors in the country by 2040.

The June 22 announcement, along with ongoing projects at Darlington and Bruce Power, further confirm Canada's ambitions to expand its nuclear power presence not just domestically but also abroad. Four pillars stand at the heart of the country's Nuclear Energy Strategy: new nuclear builds in Canada, maintaining its status as a top nuclear supplier and exporter, expanding uranium production, and continuing nuclear fission and fusion innovations.

"We are moving at speeds not seen in generations to get big things done and leveraging preexisting strengths to become a modern energy superpower. Canada has long been a nuclear leader-and we will continue to lead, under our new Nuclear Energy Strategy," Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Tim Hodgson said in a statement.

More reactors: Under the strategy, Canada would aim for the following:

• Two reactors under construction by 2035.
• Five additional reactors planned or under development by 2040.
• At least one reactor deployment outside of the province of Ontario to be operational or under construction by 2035.
• A microreactor demonstrated by 2035 and deployed to a rural community by the late 2030s.

As part of its plans for new nuclear builds, Canada would ensure a "modernized, cost-competitive" design of its CANDU pressurized heavy water reactor is in place by 2030.

According to the strategy, Canada will need to attract private financing, increase Indigenous communities' participation, and streamline its nuclear regulatory framework.

"Ninety-four percent of all nuclear reactors in the last decade were built by the Chinese or the Russians. The fact you have all levels of government standing together today affirms our commitment as Canadians to build at scale, build with speed, build with ambition using the best of made-in-Canada technology," Ontario Minister of Energy and Mines Stephen Lecce said at a June 22 news conference in Newmarket, Ontario, announcing the launch. Lecce was joined by Hodgson and other Canadian federal, provincial, and industry officials at the event.

Supplying and exporting CANDU reactor technology powers "a total of 26 reactors across six countries, including 17 at home and nine in South Korea, China, Romania, Argentina and India," according to the Canadian government news release. Additionally, Canada produced about 24 percent of the world's uranium in 2024, about 90 percent of which is exported to other countries.

Officials touted these and other figures as examples of Canada's place as a global supplier and exporter of nuclear fuel and technologies. The Nuclear Energy Strategy aims to make the country more prominent in this arena. To do that, Canada needs to adopt a "unified Team Canada approach" that is more structured and comprehensive, the strategy said.

The objectives under this pillar include the following:

• Ensuring the success of ongoing CANDU projects in Romania and China.
• Securing CANDU reactors in at least four new countries and engage another 6-10 "new nuclear entrant markets" in discussions by 2040.
• Capturing "significant Canadian supply chain participation" in at least five international non-CANDU reactor projects.
• Forming partnerships in supply chains and third markets.

More uranium production: The strategy also calls for doubling uranium exports between 2024 and 2035, with part of this effort being supported by new mining production expected by 2035. Among its key objectives is to strengthen and secure fuel supply chains for all Canadian reactors by 2032.

Proponents should "develop long-term plans for low- and intermediate-level waste management and disposal solutions under the Integrated Strategy for Radioactive Waste, to ensure waste management pace matches the rate of new reactor deployment," according to the strategy.

The last key objective under the third pillar is for stakeholders to advance and support "responsible" waste management projects like the Deep Geological Repository project. The Nuclear Waste Management Organization submitted to the Canadian government this year an initial project description for a repository that would hold Canada's spent nuclear fuel.

Greater innovation: Annual private-sector nuclear R&D investments ranged between C$200 million-C$300 million (about $140.7 million-$211.1 million) in 2019-2023. The Nuclear Energy Strategy calls for that figure to jump to C$500 million-C$700 million (about $351.8 million-$492.5 million) by 2032.

Increases in private investments are among the key objectives listed for Canada's strategy to boost innovations in nuclear fission and fusion. The objectives include the following:

• Forming international partnerships, RD&D expertise, and infrastructure in the global nuclear fuel cycle for fusion.
• Developing and demonstrating a Gen IV microreactor by 2035.
• Investing in research reactors.
• Developing a radioisotope strategy to grow Canada's share of the medical isotope market by at least 10 percent.

"The global nuclear renaissance is creating a time-limited window. Other countries are moving quickly, investing heavily, and competing for the same markets and partnerships that Canada is well positioned to secure. Hesitation is not a neutral choice; it is a decision to cede ground that will be difficult to recover," according to the strategy's conclusion.

"The Government of Canada, through this Nuclear Energy Strategy, is committed to moving with the urgency the moment demands. The country has done it before. The assets are in place. The opportunity is clear," it concludes.