Canadian Government Outlines Nuclear Strategy, Aims for "Energy Superpower" Status

The Canadian government unveiled its Nuclear Energy Strategy on Monday (June 22), committing to aggressively expand its share of the global uranium market by accelerating domestic reactor construction.

The new strategy targets four primary pillars: enabling new reactor builds across the country, expanding uranium extraction and long-term waste management, developing advanced fission and fusion innovations and cementing Canada as a global exporter of nuclear infrastructure.

To execute the plan, the government intends to deploy modern financing tools to catalyze private investment and optimize regulatory frameworks for major industrial projects.

Canada’s electrical grid is currently 80 percent non-emitting, with nuclear power generating approximately 13 percent of the national supply. The domestic industry, anchored by 17 operational CANDU reactors in Ontario and New Brunswick, contributes C$22 billion to the economy annually and supports roughly 90,000 direct and indirect jobs.

Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Tim Hodgson commented:

“We are moving at speeds not seen in generations to get big things done and leveraging pre-existing 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.

“Together with all members of Team Canada, we are taking action to ensure we have a co-ordinated, strategic approach to diversifying nuclear industry exports and bringing economic growth and security and affordable, reliable power to all Canadians.”

Beyond domestic power generation, the policy heavily targets the export market. Canada currently produces 24 percent of the world’s uranium, drawing from high-grade deposits concentrated in Northern Saskatchewan.

The country's uranium sector generated US$2.6 billion in 2024. With 90 percent of that output exported for peaceful use abroad, Ottawa is positioning Canada as a primary fuel supplier for western grids actively securing supply chains.

The government also intends to maintain sovereign control over its proprietary CANDU reactor technology while ensuring an updated design is available for the global market.

Canadian reactors currently operate in six countries, including South Korea, China, Romania, Argentina and India.

The push for new domestic capacity builds on the capital deployments Ottawa initiated last October to jumpstart reactor construction. Prime Minister Mark Carney anchored the government's nuclear ambitions with a C$3 billion joint federal-provincial equity investment into the Darlington new nuclear project in Bowmanville, Ontario.

The capital injection is funding the construction of four small modular reactors (SMRs).

Carney previously routed the site through the government's newly established Major Projects Office to expedite the build and bypass standard regulatory delays.

Once completed, the Darlington site will mark the first commercial SMR deployment in the G7.

The government estimates the project will drive C$500 million annually into Ontario’s nuclear supply chain and sustain 3,700 jobs a year over its 65 year lifespan.

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Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.