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Ontario Becomes Ninth Jurisdiction to Join Canada’s Regional Energy and Resource Tables
Ontario Becomes Ninth Jurisdiction to Join Canada's Regional Energy and Resource Tables,October 25, 2022 Bowmanville, Ontario Natural Resources Canada Canada’s abundant natural resources and its ability to develop them – sustainably and

Ontario Becomes Ninth Jurisdiction to Join Canada’s Regional Energy and Resource Tables

October 25, 2022 Bowmanville, Ontario Natural Resources Canada

Canada’s abundant natural resources and its ability to develop them – sustainably and inclusively – are a significant comparative advantage in the global energy transition. That transition presents a generational opportunity to create good jobs, economic growth and prosperity for Ontarians and all Canadians.

Today, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, federal Minister of Natural Resources, and the Honourable Todd Smith, Ontario Minister of Energy, announced that Ontario is formally joining the Regional Energy and Resource Tables, a partnership among the federal government and each province and territory to support economic growth and strong communities across the country.

For Ontario, this means supporting expansion of the province’s clean electricity grid, which is an advantage in attracting investment and good jobs, supporting the province’s manufacturing base through developing critical minerals needed for electric vehicle and battery manufacturing, advancing new nuclear technology like small modular reactors, and clean hydrogen deployment.

Canada and Ontario have agreed to focus on 5 key priorities:

  1. Ontario’s growing clean and affordable electricity grid
  2. Developing critical mineral value chains
  3. Leadership in nuclear technology deployment
  4. Accelerating clean hydrogen opportunities
  5. Advancing a sustainable and innovative forestry sector

Across each of these areas, the Canada-Ontario Regional Table will also explore how to ensure that regulatory requirements for energy and resource projects are implemented effectively and in a timely fashion.

Canada is committed to working with Ontario as it advances its recently announced procurement of 4,000 MW of electricity capacity and particularly its commitment to launching in 2023 the largest procurement of clean energy storage resources in Canada’s history. Ontario’s commitment to procure at least 1,500 MW of stand-alone energy storage is key to the province’s plan to provide reliable electricity to support economic growth and electrification while keeping costs down for ratepayers.

Today’s announcement at the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station brings the number of provinces and territories participating in the Regional Tables to nine. British Columbia, Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador helped launch the first phase of the Regional Tables in June, and New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, the Northwest Territories and Yukon were part of Phase II earlier this month.

Through the Regional Energy and Resource Tables, the Government of Canada and Ontario will continue to engage with Indigenous partners while enlisting the input and advice of union partners, municipalities, industry, workers, experts and civil society to advance the top economic priorities in the province’s natural resource sectors.

The goal is to align resources, timelines and regulatory approaches as part of an economic strategy to capitalize on key regional opportunities and priorities. Today’s small modular reactor announcement is a concrete example of what federal-provincial collaboration can accomplish.

By working together, Canadians will create the good jobs and enduring prosperity that will come with the unprecedented economic opportunities of building a net-zero world.

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