Reliable, Carbon-Free Electricity
Reliable, Carbon-Free Electricity
Nuclear energy works day and night, at all times of the year. Fifteen times more efficient than renewable sources, it is the primary source of electricity for about half of Ontarians.
Ontario’s nuclear industry continues to innovate with new technologies to support existing operations and to power even greater possibilities in the decades to come, through refurbishment projects, medical isotopes, SMRs and potential new large nuclear.
OPG Pickering supplies enough energy to meet the demands of 1.5M homes per year
OPG Darlington supplies enough energy to meet the demands of 2M homes per year
Ontario’s nuclear supply was critical to the successful phase out of coal in Ontario in 2014, resulting in the largest single greenhouse gas reduction in North America.
In Canada alone, nuclear power helps avoid 80 million tonnes of carbon emissions per year – equivalent to removing 15 million cars from the road.
The smaller land-use footprint and longevity of nuclear stations mean that nuclear power has among the lowest lifecycle carbon footprints of any clean energy source.
Energy density is the secret to nuclear energy’s environmental benefits. The electricity from a typical 1,000-megawatt nuclear power station, which would supply the needs of over a million people, produces only three cubic metres of used fuel per year. In contrast, a 1,000-megawatt coal-fired power station produces approximately 300,000 tonnes of ash and more than six million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year. In fact, all the used nuclear fuel produced in Canada since the 1960s would fit into one hockey rink stacked up to 30 feet.
Zero-emission nuclear energy already provides more than 50 per cent of the electricity our province needs, and the world is watching Ontario as we double down and lead the largest expansion of nuclear power on the continent.
Ontario Minister of Energy and Electrification