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The future of Saskatchewan’s power grid lies with nuclear – according to the minister responsible for SaskPower, that decision has been made.
Minister Jeremy Harrison said the question the power company is wrestling with is what kind of technology to use, whether small modular reactors (SMRs) or larger nuclear.
“We’re keeping, very much, an open mind on what would be the appropriate technology choice for the province, what makes sense,” explained Harrison on Thursday.
Listen to Jeremy Harrison on the Evan Bray Show:
The province has been talking about nuclear power as a possibility for SaskPower for several years, looking at the feasibility and as an option. SaskPower’s public-facing website says the company is still looking at the potential to add nuclear into its power generation mix.
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Recently, Harrison has been talking about nuclear as a solid inevitability as opposed to an option. On Thursday, he confirmed it to 980 CJME.
“The binary decision about whether we are going to transition to baseload nuclear is made, we are going to be doing that, that is going to be the future for power generation in this province,” he said.
Most recently, Harrison announced the province will be extending the life of its coal-fired power plants as a bridge to get to nuclear power.
Nuclear is an attractive option for Harrison because, like coal, Saskatchewan has its own supply of uranium. He said he’d love to see more elements of the supply chain in Saskatchewan – SMRs use enriched uranium, which isn’t currently done in Saskatchewan.
“We’re doing a lot of work on that, actually, with partners on how that can roll out, make sense and work economically,” Harrison said.
An artist’s rendering of a BWRX-300 small modular reactor (SMR). Saskatchewan is considering using SMRs for power generation in future. (Supplied)
The minister said SaskPower is working through all the issues around choosing a technology, and much will depend on Saskatchewan’s partnerships with Ontario and New Brunswick, which already have nuclear power, and the federal government.
Harrison said he’s invited the federal government to be a partner in the nuclear project and said it’s “very, very interested”.
He also views the venture into nuclear power as a national project, saying it could be an opportunity to sell Canadian technology around the world. Harrison said there’s an opportunity for “real and meaningful collaboration” with a number of governments.
Most recently, SaskPower and the provincial government have been pouring a lot of time and money into investigating SMRs, including entering into MOUs with other provinces. It’s also announced the first one would be built in Estevan. However, Harrison said he’s had many conversations about larger nuclear reactors as well.
