Hoping to reduce their carbon footprint and combat climate change, Saskatchewan, Ontario and New Brunswick are turning to small nuclear reactors for future power.
The province’s premiers, who are all against a federal price on carbon emissions, made the announcement together in Mississauga Ontario on Sunday, a day before the premiers took part in The Council of the Federation meetings.
Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe released a statement on Sunday that read; “Ontario, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick agreed today to work together to explore new, cutting-edge technology in nuclear power generation to provide carbon-free, affordable, reliable, and safe energy, while helping us unlock economic potential across Canada, including rural and remote regions.
We have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), committing to collaborate on the development and deployment of innovative, versatile and scalable nuclear reactors, known as Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), right here in Canada.
SMRs could generate clean and low-cost energy for both on-grid and off-grid communities, connect more remote and rural areas of our province, and benefit energy-intensive industries, including the mining and manufacturing sectors. It could also drive economic growth and export opportunities as these technologies are further adopted across the country and around the world.
Our governments support a collaborative approach to reducing emissions and growing the economy in a way that meets the specific needs and economic priorities of each province. We look forward to continuing to work together on innovative energy solutions and creating the best business environment to attract jobs and growth in regions right across the country.”
By working together, our provinces can achieve bigger and bolder objectives and seize the opportunity to develop and deploy SMR technology in Canada.
And in so doing, Canadians from coast-to-coast-to-coast can play an even larger role in addressing global climate change. https://t.co/mrm57KzBOG
— Scott Moe (@PremierScottMoe) December 2, 2019
The three provinces say they’ll work together to determine the best technologies for the deployment of the small modular reactors, which in Canada are also known as SMR’s
