Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. I appreciate the time of the committee.
Let me start by thanking the committee for the opportunity to be here to talk about the state of the nuclear industry here in Canada. I do appreciate the value of the work the committee has undertaken on nuclear issues, particularly in the past number of weeks.
The industry, as you know, is very important to the country and it's something we do well. We have a strong and proud history in the nuclear field, and we've been technological pioneers within the industry for decades, literally since the infancy of the nuclear era.
The nuclear industry and its place in our society today is I think perhaps often underestimated, and it's improperly associated with some negative connotations. The reality is that the nuclear industry employs more than 30,000 Canadians, and many of these jobs are highly skilled and high-paying employment opportunities. About 15% of Canada's electricity, and fully half of Ontario's, comes from nuclear power. The industry as a whole has an annual power output valued at approximately $6 billion.
With nuclear power set to play an increasingly important role in balancing the need for power with a desire to reduce greenhouse gas emissions not just here at home but around the world, this industry clearly has tremendous opportunity for growth in the coming years and decades. The Canadian industry needs to be positioned to take advantage of these global opportunities.
I recently met with my international counterparts at the International Energy Agency ministerial meeting in Paris. One of the key priorities that many of the energy ministers highlighted was the need to continue allowing, as well as promoting, nuclear power into the global energy mix. And indeed, this past summer that was part of the G-8 communiqué.
Nobu Tanaka, who is the executive director of the IEA, has advised that to achieve the greenhouse gas reduction goals, 32 nuclear power plants will need to be built every year between now and 2050.
The Government of Canada has a critical role in fostering the conditions for this industry to be able to take full advantage of those opportunities and for the safe, secure, and environmentally sound development of the nuclear industry. So we have set out our policy, based on three clear objectives. First, meet Canada's clean energy needs economically, safely, and reliably; second, maximize return on Canada's already great investment in nuclear energy; and third, position our nuclear industry for growth in both the domestic and the global market.
We have been acting on these objectives to deliver results for Canadians. We've extended the funding for both AECL and the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission to carry out their mandates. We brought in Bill C-20, which was referred to committee in June of this year and which is today to be considered by this committee and which will be further studied in the coming weeks.
Bill C-20 has been drafted to modernize the framework for nuclear liability. We've also made the decisions that needed to be made to advance the framework for managing nuclear waste. We have a program under way to begin the cleanup of nuclear legacy liabilities at Chalk River. And the Port Hope area initiative has recently received a five-year licence from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission to move forward on the design of the Port Hope project.
As you know, this government has endorsed the adaptive phased management approach recommended by the Nuclear Waste Management Organization for dealing with nuclear fuel waste. A consultation process designed to identify a willing host community has commenced and is expected to continue for several years under government oversight in accordance with the Nuclear Fuel Waste Act.
These are all necessary actions that are vitally important to bolstering and building public confidence in what is a very important industry for Canada and for Canadian workers.
So there's a great deal of action and progress under way in all things nuclear in the country, but I think there are two clear priority areas where we all want to see some concrete progress in the coming months and years. And while I'm going to keep my comments brief today, I want to talk about these two priority areas: isotope production and the restructuring of AECL.
On isotopes, due to the comprehensive work this committee has already undertaken on behalf of all Canadians, more specifically by focusing your attention on the issue of the supply of medical isotopes, you have performed an important service for Canadians.
I'd also like to take this opportunity to reiterate my personal thanks and those of the government to the medical community for their tremendous work to ensure we have been able to cope with the supply issues of recent months.
I have been clear that going forward, AECL's top priority must be the NRU's return to service as expeditiously and safely as possible. AECL officials continue to inform the Canadian public that they believe the NRU reactor will return to service in the first quarter of 2010. I've been meeting weekly with the CEO and chair of AECL to hold them accountable to the schedule. AECL, at the end of the day, is accountable to the taxpayers of Canada, and we shall continue to insist that AECL meets the expectations of all Canadians.
My department and I have also been taking a leadership role in mobilizing international collaboration to maximize the global isotope supply, and we will continue to do this. We shall continue to consider the medium- and long-term options for isotope production as well. These considerations and decisions will be vital to our formulating plans and policies for the coming years.
Turning to AECL restructuring, the second priority, it will begin to take clearer shape as the review team continues to work through the many submissions received. The review team will assist us in paving the path forward. I am confident in our ability to make the necessary steps to strengthen Canada's nuclear industry and put us in a better position to access business and construction opportunities, both at home and abroad.
My special advisor, Serge Dupont, is here today. He went into detail earlier this month as to why we are intent upon restructuring AECL, so I'll try not to be too repetitive.
In short, AECL's structure and its business model need to change, and AECL needs to be in a position to have access to new business and investment partners if it's going to be truly competitive on a global scale. If we're going to protect, and hopefully grow, tens of thousands of jobs, AECL needs to be restructured in a thoughtful and considered fashion. It also needs to change if we are going to protect the taxpayer by bringing in risk capital up front to share some of the risks while increasing the potential for success. As it stands today, the Canadian taxpayer shoulders both the front-end investment costs and the downside risks of the business. This can be a particularly heavy load to bear, and we've seen an example of this in the first-of-a-kind refurbishment projects.
We are working to position the Canadian nuclear industry to retain and create skilled jobs. We recognize and value the contributions the hard-working employees in this industry are making to nuclear science, to technology, to our economy, and to our international reputation as a world leader and a technological pioneer.
Without a doubt, the nuclear industry's employees, the engineers and scientists, are world class. We as a government are very thankful for these contributions, and we need to highlight the employees' successes and the expertise on the world stage. Quite frankly, some of the world's biggest and brightest thinkers in the nuclear industry live and work here in Canada. Our government is acting now to ensure that these highly skilled employees will have every opportunity to actively participate in high-value projects, designing, building, and servicing nuclear energy technology in Canada and abroad.
Similarly, we need to act to improve AECL's R and D activities. The Chalk River labs and the company's R and D infrastructure as a whole need to be part of a culture that promotes innovation and excellence, feeding the industry at large, not just a reactor business. We need to be looking at new models of management. A government-owned, company-operated structure, for example, is one alternative possibility that we're taking a serious look at.
On that note, Mr. Chairman, I'm going to end my remarks simply by saying that I am committed and this government is committed to seeing the nuclear industry in Canada overcome some serious challenges to become a stronger, better, and more successful industry than ever. This is an industry that, given the conditions to grow properly, has a very, very bright future. It's a source of growth, innovation, jobs, and clean energy, things we all agree are critical to this country's future success.
Thank you very much, and I'd be happy to take questions.
