Saskatchewan says its going nuclear to help power provinces energy future

An organization that supports First Nations in the energy sector in Saskatchewan says it’s all for the province’s move towards nuclear energy. “As First Nations, we’re starting to better understand the global demands on our resources,” said Sheldon Wuttunee, president and CEO of the First Nations Natural Resource Centre of Excellence. “Here in our treaty and traditional territories, in our in our province of Saskatchewan and coming together to determine to co develop these plans are extremely, extremely important to the future.” Wuttunee joined member of the provincial government and Cameco, one of the largest companies in the world that provide uranium fuel for reactors, at a news conference for the announcement. The province said that SaskPower, a Crown corporation, has secured its first small modular reactors, also known as SMRs. At the moment, Ontario is the only province in Canada that has nuclear reactors for energy. In May, the province announced that it’s going ahead with four SMRs at its Darlington facility east of Toronto. The first one is going to cost approximately $7 billion, according to the province. The federal government is also pumping money into that project for research. Saskatchewan is looking at the same reactor. “The Government of Saskatchewan is committed to a nuclear future utilizing our amazing Saskatchewan uranium resource to power our province and provide a secure energy future,” Crown Investments Corporation Minister Jeremy Harrison said. “We are going to get to that future by extending the life of our coal facilities and utilizing our Saskatchewan coal reserves that have kept the lights on in this province for generations. This plan is based in reality.” Read More: Will small modular reactors be part of net zero carbon emissions in the North?  Wuttunee said advancing energy security with First Nation partners turns reconciliation into action. “When we look forward to the exciting opportunities ahead of us, not only in nuclear but in power generation,” he said. “Transmission and projects we too, as First Nations, are seeking those opportunities right from equity opportunities within these projects to meaningful inclusion in supply chain and, of course, workforce development.” The province said that they expect nuclear energy to grow as a way to make power bills low and the energy reliable. Harrison said that moving forward with nuclear energy is part of the province’s plan to reach net-zero power by 2050. According to the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, SaskPower is in a “multi-year planning phase” for the development of the SMR in the mid-2030s. It’s expected to have a plan ready by 2029. Continue Reading