Canada's Power Industry

Electricity has become a cornerstone of the Canadian economy and Canadian life. Canadians are the third highest per capita users of electricity in the world. Plentiful, inexpensive energy is required to provide heat in a northern climate, to transport goods in the second largest country in the world and to run a large industrial economy. High quality electricity supply is essential to provide the medium for Canada's rapidly growing information economy.

Canada's great needs for electricity are met through abundant energy resources: falling water, coal, natural gas and uranium. Installed generating capacity totalled 109.8 GW in 1999 and 557.2 Twh were produced. Sixty-one percent of Canada's electric power is generated from hydro, 26 percent from thermal and 12 percent from nuclear energy sources.

The preponderant portion of Canadian electricity supply is generated by means that minimize adverse environmental effects. The industry has made commitments to finding environmentally beneficial solutions to every aspect of its operations and to contributing to Canada's pursuit of its air pollution control objectives. Canadian thermal, nuclear and hydro technology is state-of-the-art, and Canadians are helping to pioneer some of the emerging alternative technologies.

The electric power industry in Canada has assets of $148 billion (1997) and earns $35 billion in annual revenue. Canadian utilities directly employ approximately 78 000 people, and an additional 25 000 people are employed in electric power production for manufacturing and engineering companies.

In terms of global rank:

• Canada is the fifth largest producer of electric power in the world, generating 4 percent of the world's total.
• Canada is the world's largest producer of hydropower.
• Canada is the world's second largest electricity exporter.

Attaining this level of performance despite extreme terrain, severe climate and long distances has made Canada's electric power industry an international leader. Moreover, the capabilities gained in bringing reliable, low-cost electricity to far-flung communities in Canada can also serve the development needs of other countries.

Significant Achievements

Among Canada's major electric power development projects, the James Bay hydro-electric project in Québec is perhaps the most renowned. Completed in its current configuration in 1984, this electric power complex features a spillway three times higher than Niagara Falls and the largest underground powerhouse in the world. It has five major power stations, with capacities ranging from 1368 MW at LG-1 to 5328 MW at the Robert-Bourassa power station, for a total of 15 000 MW.

In the nuclear field, Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) developed the CANDU reactor. Major nuclear generating sites are located in Ontario at Pickering, Bruce and Darlington, in Québec at Gentilly and in New Brunswick at Point Lepreau. There are 700 MW class CANDU6 reactors designed by AECL operating in Canada, the Republic of Korea, Argentina and Romania. Three more are under construction, two in China and one in Romania. AECL's larger 900 MW class reactor, CANDU9, is an evolutionary design based on the proven multiunit reactors at the Darlington and Bruce B nuclear generating stations.

The transmission of electricity over long distances constitutes another significant achievement. Canada's many economically attractive hydro sites are often located far from their markets. Canadians have had to pioneer new transmission technologies such as the world's first 735 kV transmission line, which is state-of-the-art in extra high voltage (EHV) alternating current and high voltage direct current (HVDC).