A new province-wide poll shows 80 per cent of Ontarians want the Ford government to cancel a major US nuclear deal in favour of Canadian renewable energy alternatives. 

Ford signed contracts in 2021 with US-based GE Hitachi for small modular reactors (SMRs) at the Darlington site and for enriched uranium imports — as the province moves ahead with its $20.9 billion plan to build four of the first SMRs in Canada.

The first reactor is scheduled to be completed by 2029 and connected to the grid by 2030, supplying power to approximately 300,000 homes. The province says the project, once complete, will deliver 1,200 megawatts — enough electricity for 1.2 million homes.

Despite the scale of the investment, it remains unclear how much of the $20.9 billion will go to GE Hitachi or other US-based suppliers. 

According to Ontario Power Generation (OPG), GE Hitachi is the technology developer for the Darlington SMRs — responsible for the design, procurement of major components, and engineering support for the project.

Earlier this year, in response to new US tariffs, Ontario barred American firms from its electricity procurement process, urging utilities to “buy Canadian” and seek domestic alternatives.

The poll of 1,200 Ontarians, conducted by Oraclepoll Research for the Ontario Clean Air Alliance, found overwhelming support for clean energy alternatives: 88 per cent support expanding the grid to import water, wind, and solar from Quebec, Manitoba and the Maritimes; 70 per cent prefer wind and solar over US nuclear technology; 66 per cent back offshore wind projects in the Great Lakes; and 72 per cent support zero-interest utility programs for heat pumps to reduce gas use.

Ontario Energy Minister Stephen Lecce defended the SMR project, calling it a “nation-building” initiative. It will create 18,000 Canadian jobs, inject $500 million annually into the economy, and 80 per cent of project spending will remain in Ontario, he added.

The construction “will be led by Canadian workers using Canadian steel, concrete and materials to help deliver the extraordinary amount of reliable and clean power we will need to deliver on our ambitious plan to protect Ontario and unleash our economy,” Lecce said in a news release.

But Jack Gibbons, chair of the Ontario Clean Air Alliance, says the project increases Ontario’s dependence on foreign suppliers at a time when trade tensions with the US are escalating. According to the alliance, the new reactors will rely on enriched uranium Canada cannot produce due to international non-proliferation agreements — meaning the fuel must be imported from the United States.

“It just doesn't make sense to build new, high-cost US nuclear reactors that will drive up our electricity bills, increase our dependence on the United States, and jeopardize our national security,” Gibbons said. “We have safer and much cheaper alternatives: wind and solar combined with storage and stronger east-west energy cooperation.”

Gibbons told Canada’s National Observer the timing of this nuclear investment is particularly concerning, as Ontario is urging utilities to cut reliance on American suppliers.

“This is exactly the time for Ontario to look for alternative, clean-energy sources within Canada,” he said.

In an emailed response to concerns raised by the Ontario Clean Air Alliance, OPG said building wind, solar, and battery storage to match the Darlington new nuclear project’s power output would be more expensive. 

OPG also said the renewable alternative would require far more land, new transmission lines and face supply chain risks, according to an analysis by the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO). In contrast, the power company says the Darlington plan uses existing infrastructure, carries fewer risks, and is in a strategic location. Based on these findings, the IESO recommended going ahead with the project.

The agency said the project is overwhelmingly Ontario-made. While the reactor design originates in the US, OPG says 80 per cent of the project's sourcing is from Ontario, with only five per cent coming from US suppliers. On the issue of fuel supply, the utility says it has established a diversified supply chain to minimize risks. 

Gibbons called on Premier Ford to collaborate with Prime Minister Mark Carney, who has pledged to make Canada a global clean-energy leader.

According to the IESO, demand in Ontario is expected to rise 75 per cent by 2050. 

A recent report by the Ontario Clean Air Alliance estimates that electricity from new nuclear power would cost 3.6 times more than onshore wind, three times more than solar, and 1.7 times more than offshore wind.

The alliance report also highlights Ontario’s untapped renewable potential — especially wind energy from the Great Lakes, which could supply more than enough clean electricity to meet future demand.

Abdul Matin Sarfraz / Canada’s National Observer / Local Journalism Initiative