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Nuclear power might be in Strathcona County’s energy future.
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In partnership with Parkland County, the municipality hosted more than 400 industry and government delegates at the SMR Canada 2025 Summit at the Community Centre’s Agora on Tuesday, March 4 and Wednesday, March 5.
SMRs — small modular reactors — are a modernized nuclear technology that’s more compact and considered to be more efficient and cost-effective. Industry advocates say SMRs can provide reliable 24/7 power with minimal environmental impact.
Mayor Rod Frank said the gathering brought together experts, policy makers and innovators who are exploring the potential of SMRs in shaping Canada’s energy future. Highlighting success and business attraction in the county’s Refinery Row and in Alberta’s Industrial Heartland, Frank said this area and the province is no stranger to innovation.
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“As we look to the future, we look for the next set of innovations and sustainable energy is a key part of the conversation,” Frank told the packed Agora during his opening speech on March 4. “A 2022 survey found that over 70 per cent of Albertans carry a positive attitude toward nuclear energy, so this tells us that the conversation about SMRs and nuclear is not off the table, on the contrary, it’s an exciting time to continue the conversation… Summits like this are very important first steps. Through innovation, collaboration with visionary thinking, we can ensure that our communities remain leaders in energy development, potentially driving economic growth and environmental stewardship.”
A partnership between Capital Power and Ontario Power Generational (OPG), which is looking at three possible regions to build an SMR in Alberta — including one in Strathcona County’s Alberta’s Industrial Heartland, said SMRs can be a cornerstone of the province’s sustainable energy future. The other two regions being explored include Woodland County near Whitecourt and Leduc County (the Genesse area). A site selection study will involve technical considerations — including access to Alberta’s transmission system to carry the electricity to major load centres, and access to major highways and water — engagement, and economic benefits.
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Capital Power and OPG are carrying out a feasibility assessment to explore the potential of deploying SMRs to supply the Alberta grid. This early phase work does not include confirming what kind of SMR technology will be used. The two partners are also studying the economic impact of a potential project, including the number of jobs that could be created.
During an Alberta SMR feasibility study presentation, Capital Power and OPG outlined that Alberta needs a stable supply of reliable and clean power generation to meet growing demand, and nuclear power has the potential to be a key solution to our energy needs today and into the future.
Regardless of what site is selected, seeing shovels in the ground for any SMR in Alberta would take years as it depends on various regulation approvals, licensing, environmental and site studies, labour studies, community engagement and support, including feedback from Indigenous and First Nations groups.
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OPG is currently close to construction of an SMR project near Clarington, Ontario. It took upwards of 15 years to complete the planning and consultation for that facility, according to the city’s mayor. Typically, SMRs are planned to operate for 60 years.
To get a better understanding of what’s underway in Ontario, Mayor Frank, along with Parkland County’s Mayor Allan Gamble, hosted a municipal panel that discussed the whole planning timeline and what it takes to get resident buy-in.
Mayor of Clarington, ON, Adrian Foster, who is also the current chair of the Canadian Association of Nuclear Host Communities, spoke about OPG’s Darlington plant and the benefits it has brought to his community. He noted that 20 per cent on Ontario’s power needs are generated by the facility, in addition to life-saving isotopes that are used around the world. About 2,000 people work at the existing site.
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“I have to tell you, Albert and Saskatchewan, your opportunity right now is absolutely amazing,” Foster said. “In the case of Darlington, there’s a $12.8 billion dollar refurbishment on the existing plants. They won’t tell us the cost of the first-of-its-kind small modular reactors, but it’s significant. The guesstimate is a $100 billion uplift to the Canadian economy, and that’s in our little tiny neck of the woods.”
The community outreach lead for the Township of Ignace, ON Giacomo Pastore also outlined the 15-year path that led that community’s mayor and council agree to having a nuclear water management facility. The small community of 1,300 residents is expected to receive its first bundle of used nuclear fuel from Darlington, Bruce or Pickering in 2043. He called the $26 billion dollar development “a once in a lifetime opportunity”, one that benefits the community’s youth and future generations. That project will create 700 to 1,000 jobs over the next two decades.
Both Foster and Pastore agreed for any municipality interested in being a host community for future SMR development, constant community education, project updates, and transparency are required.
“My office is not getting any calls in concerns of building those reactors,” Foster said. “There is a depth of knowledge, there’s a depth of understanding, and that’s because of stakeholder engagement.”
For more information and updates on the Capital Power-OPG project looking at the three sites in the capital region, go to albertasmr.ca.
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