Daily Newsletter

27 October 2023

Daily Newsletter

27 October 2023

Construction of SMRs to contribute C$15.3bn to Canada’s GDP, report says

Four small modular reactors (SMRs) are scheduled to be built in Ontario.

Alfie Shaw October 26 2023

The construction of four SMRs in Ontario is expected to increase gross domestic product (GDP) by C$15.3bn ($11.2bn) in Canada, including C$13.7bn to Ontario’s GDP, according to a report by the Conference Board of Canada. The project will also create an average of 2,000 jobs per year for the next 65 years.

The report said: “There is an increasing need for investing in stable and reliable energy resources, such as commercial-scale SMR technology. The deployment of more nuclear power in Ontario is a major investment decision. It is therefore important to understand the potential economic benefits for the province and the country of investing in new nuclear power generation.”

According to the report, building the SMRs creates 113,161 jobs in Ontario alone, while creating 128,431 nationally. Ontario will reap 89% of the benefit, with the remaining 11% of domestic economic gain spread across other provinces and territories. Taxes generated will total $4.4bn in Ontario and $4.9bn nationally.

In October 2022, electric utility Ontario Power Generation (OPG) submitted an application to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission requesting a licence to construct a GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy BWRX-300 SMR at the Darlington site in Ontario. While the licence is required for any nuclear construction work to begin at the site, preparation work is already under way. OPG expects the request will be granted by the end of 2024, and according to this timeline, the unit will be completed by late 2028 and supply power to the grid in 2029.

OPG president and CEO Ken Hartwick said: “Our plan to construct  four new reactors at Darlington will generate opportunities across Ontario and Canada as suppliers of nuclear components and services have an opportunity to expand to serve the growing SMR market here and abroad.”

The diminutive size of SMRs means they can be sited at locations unsuited to larger nuclear power plants. The technology is designed to save on cost and construction time and be deployed incrementally to match increasing energy demand.

Currently, around 15% of Canada’s electricity comes from nuclear power, with 19 reactors mostly based in Ontario providing 13.6GW of power.

Nuclear Power dynamics in India

India is the world’s third-largest energy consumer after the US and China. To meet the rising power demand, a significant amount of power generation capacity is expected to be commissioned from 2023 to 2035. India is focusing on the development of its nuclear power sector to increase its electricity generation. It has signed a nuclear deal with the US for the supply of nuclear fuel, and new nuclear power plants with

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