Natural Resources Committee on Feb. 10th, 2026

[The Chair, Liberal, Terry Duguid]

I call this meeting to order.

I will start by acknowledging that we are meeting on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinabe nation.

Welcome to meeting 23 of the House of Commons Standing Committee on Natural Resources. Today's meeting is taking place in a hybrid format.

I'd like to remind everyone of the following points.

Before speaking, please wait until I recognize you. For those participating by video conference, click on the microphone icon to activate your mic. Please mute yourself when you are not speaking. For those on Zoom—our witnesses in the first panel are all on Zoom today—at the bottom of your screen you can select the appropriate channel for interpretation: floor, English or French.

For members participating in person or via Zoom, please raise your hand if you wish to speak. The committee clerk and I will do our best to maintain a consolidated speaking order. All comments should be addressed through the chair.

Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2) and the motion adopted on Thursday, September 18, 2025, the committee shall resume its study of the management of Canadian energy exports.

I would like to welcome our witnesses. From McMaster University, we have Professor David Novog, director of the McMaster Institute for Energy Studies. From Energy Storage Canada, we have Andrew Thiele, vice-president of policy and government relations, and Robert Tremblay, policy manager.

All witnesses have conducted the mandatory witness onboarding test. They all passed—one just barely, but we got them through.

You will each have five minutes for your opening remarks, after which we will open the floor to questions.

Professor Novog, we'll begin with you. You have five minutes. Please proceed.

[David Novog, Director, McMaster Institute for Energy Studies, McMaster University, As an Individual]

Thank you, Mr. Chair and the committee, for the invitation to speak here today.

As an expert in nuclear energy, I have been involved in various aspects of the technology for 30 years. This includes experiences with Japan and France's nuclear fleets, with Ontario Hydro and its successor companies, and now in academia.

I had roles advising the Ontario government on nuclear emergency planning and preforming R and D for the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. I am currently a professor in the faculty of engineering at McMaster, and I work at the McMaster nuclear reactor, the MNR. The MNR is Canada's largest research reactor. It produces many critical nuclear isotopes, some used domestically and some exported. It is a singular, unique infrastructure supporting Canada's nuclear sector.

In the nuclear field, there are immense export possibilities for direct sales and technical services, some of which are already under way today. Our recent successes in refurbishment in Ontario and new builds at Darlington have put Canada centre stage in global nuclear discussions.

While our exports of Canadian CANDU technology were decades ago, Canada continues to see returns from those investments. Of particular note are the international refurbishment projects being led by Canadian companies like Candu Energy, where the entire Canadian-centred supply chain is performing critical work for overseas markets. The net services and component contracts to support CANDU exports over the years have been a huge success story that few people have recognized. The new SMR project at Darlington would be another defining moment for the Canadian nuclear story, as many countries globally are considering that design.

A key element of our success that's not often recognized has been the top-tier talent trained through Canada's colleges and universities. I've spent my career looking at things of deep complexity, from the innermost parts of the reactor to large-scale accidents like Fukushima. It has become clear to me that workforce availability, knowledge and expertise are the foundation of success.

I'd like to start with this question: What is the issue? In a recent workforce planning study performed at McMaster, we predicted that there will be significant workforce stresses in the coming decade for the nuclear energy and isotope sectors. The predictions show that direct and supply chain employment demands may triple over the coming decade.

This is founded on four key points. First, the Independent Electricity System Operator in Ontario calls for 17 new gigawatts of capacity domestically in Ontario alone. Given the capacity factor of renewables and difficulties with seasonal storage, it is likely that a bulk of this baseload supply will be met by nuclear. The 17 gigawatts would be approximately 60 BWRX units, like the 60 reactors currently under construction in Darlington. It's likely that some of these reactors will be of the large variety. In any event, Canada may have multiple nuclear units under construction simultaneously, while also looking at supporting the export market, which will put significant strains on the labour market.

The second point is that sector-to-sector worker transitions and immigration will be critical to meeting these workforce requirements. Provincial and federal government co-operation on skills development and retraining will be needed.

Third, as successful companies throughout the nuclear landscape—from mining at Cameco all the way to used nuclear fuel by the Nuclear Waste Management Organization—capitalize on global growth and domestic expansion, recruitment will need to ramp up significantly.

Last, and what is not often recognized, is that observing large-scale infrastructure projects like those in the U.K. shows that attrition rates can reach 20% in these large megaprojects.

To counter this, there have been excellent programs through tri-council research funding to support faculty and support universities, including over 100 highly qualified personnel passing through my lab alone. In addition, Natural Resources Canada, through initiatives like its enabling SMRs program, has increased the number of companies active in Canada and also supported R and D at universities.

As Canada embarks on its simultaneous megaprojects in the defence sector, oil and gas, energy, AI and minerals, a national workforce issue is emerging where sectors will compete over a limited talent pool.

How can we do more? Recent announcements by the federal government on the Canada Impact+ research chairs is a promising start. This will bring hundreds of world-leading talents to universities and will fund a large number of new students in these areas. Additional short-term actions—for example, enhancing support programs like the Canada research chair program or transitioning the enabling NRCan programs to large reactor builds—would certainly help.

Finally, working with provincial leaders to establish sustained, targeted and direct funding to grow training programs and facilities like McMaster's reactor is desperately needed. An urgent response is needed now to meet future demand.

I'd be happy to take questions related to the workforce study, nuclear expansion or the nuclear sector in general.

Thank you to the members of the committee for your time.

[The Chair, Liberal, Terry Duguid]

Thank you, Professor Novog.

Mr. Thiele, you now have five minutes.

[Andrew Thiele, Vice-President, Policy and Government Relations, Energy Storage Canada]

Thank you, Chair and members of the committee, for the opportunity to appear today.

My name is Andrew Thiele, vice-president of policy and GR at Energy Storage Canada. I'm joined by my colleague Robert Tremblay, ESC policy manager.

Energy Storage Canada is the national association representing companies involved in the development, manufacturing, integration and operation of energy storage technologies across the country. Today I want to focus on three core messages for you. First, energy storage is now essential infrastructure for Canada's electricity future. Second, storage is an industrial and supply chain opportunity, not just a grid solution. Third, Canada can lead globally, but doing so requires pragmatic federal policy coupled with smart provincial planning.

Canada's electricity system is undergoing rapid transformation, with rising demand and increasing reliability pressures. Energy storage provides firm capacity, flexible dispatchability and critical reliability services.

Canada's storage market is also accelerating quickly. Ontario has more than 2,800 megawatts of storage under contract or construction, one of the largest procurement pipelines in North America, and other provinces are also moving forward. Quebec has identified over 1,200 megawatts of opportunity. Alberta has currently deployed over 200 megawatts of storage and is looking to procure up to 750 megawatts of new storage in the next two years.

Storage is becoming one of the most important clean industrial opportunities of this decade. Canada is increasingly shifting beyond vehicle assembly toward the core battery supply chain, including battery cells and modules, grid-scale storage systems, long-duration storage technologies and recycling and critical mineral recovery.

The initial EV investment established Ontario as an auto transition hub. The next phase is a deeper dive into the battery value supply chain, where economic value, security relevance and export potential are much higher. Grid-scale storage demand can become a stable domestic anchor for manufacturing capacity, even as EV markets face cyclical uncertainty.

As we look ahead, one of the fastest-growing demand drivers for storage is AI and advanced computing. These step-load increases can take tens or even hundreds of megawatts at single sites. Transmission expansion can take up to 10 years, while storage systems can be deployed and permitted within two to four years. Storage creates room for economic opportunity while deferring costly upgrades and supporting industrial and compute investment.

Storage also strengthens Canada's electricity trade potential. Interties are essential infrastructure, but they are only as valuable as the flexibility behind them. Storage allows provinces to absorb energy during low demand periods and discharge during peaks, making interties more firm, controllable and economically valuable. This supports Canada's ability to export clean electricity at the right time.

Canada already has a diverse group of storage technology leaders and OEMs, including Invinity in British Columbia, manufacturing vanadium flow batteries; Hydrostor in Ontario, leading globally in compressed air storage; e-Zinc, developing zinc-based long-duration storage solutions; and EVLO, a company backed by Hydro-Québec, strengthening domestic battery systems integration. This diversity matters. Canada is not just importing storage; we are building expertise.

At the same time, it is critical to acknowledge near-term supply chain realities. Battery supply chains remain globally concentrated, particularly for cells, subcomponents and processed critical minerals. Even leading North American OEMs still rely on international inputs in the near term. Canada cannot flip a switch overnight to full domestic sourcing without risking delays, cost increases and potential reliability impacts.

This brings us to energy security. ESC supports the principle of excluding high-risk foreign enterprises from participation in Canadian energy procurements, consistent with global best practices. However, these restrictions must be designed carefully. Abrupt or poorly designed measures could delay projects, raise costs or undermine local and indigenous participation.

ESC recommends a risk-based, non-retroactive transition framework, with a clear, targeted state-owned enterprise definition based on ownership and control thresholds; no retroactive application to existing contracted projects; and a phased implementation plan starting with cyber-sensitive components.

Cybersecurity risk management is not starting from scratch. Utilities and regulators already impose standards through interconnection requirements, procurement controls, remote access restrictions, firmware management, and testing and certification. The question is how to build on this foundation in a smart and targeted way.

The federal government has a central role in ensuring that Canada captures the full economic value of storage while protecting its energy security. ESC's recommendations are, therefore, the following: First, optimize investment tax credits; second, expand deployment programs; and third, pair restrictions with industrial policy. Restrictions alone do not build supply chains; industrial policy does. ESC recommends targeted federal storage supply chain fund incentives focused on domestic content bonuses, not on restrictions.

In closing, energy storage is essential to Canada's electricity future, and it's a major industrial opportunity, if done correctly. With clear investment signals, smart supply chain security measures and coordinated federal incentives, storage can strengthen reliability, lower costs, support reconciliation outcomes with indigenous populations and position Canada as a global leader and energy superpower.

Thank you. I look forward to your questions.

[The Chair, Liberal, Terry Duguid]

Thank you to our presenters this morning. You were very clear and concise, which we appreciate.

We will now go to questions. We are going to start, as we usually do, with Mr. Tochor.

Go ahead, Mr. Tochor.

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you to our witnesses.

We hear a lot about Mark Carney claiming that we're becoming an energy superpower as a nation. Can we become an energy superpower without energy storage, Mr. Thiele?

[Andrew Thiele]

Can we become an energy superpower without energy storage? I just want to make sure I heard the question correctly.

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

Yes. I know that it answers itself, but I'd like to hear it from you.

[Andrew Thiele]

Fundamentally, storage is a critical grid enabler. The practices we're seeing across the country and the different applications of storage based on pre-existing supply mixes within provinces.... Ontario, where I'm located, is very strong on nuclear. Storage plays a role in moving around a lot of baseload that tends not to be as practical to use overnight. When you have heavy renewable integration, as we see in the Atlantic provinces and even in B.C., storage plays a role in that.

My colleague Robert, who's actually in Alberta, can speak to the many uses of storage in creating opportunities for fast-frequency response and fundamentally helping to serve that grid. It is a different market from the rest of Canada in how its energy system is designed and the role it plays.

The simple answer is that, fundamentally, we cannot. It is part of Canada's energy superpower agenda—

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

That is the most frustrating thing. We have Mark Carney claiming that we're going to be an energy superpower and talking about all the different energy sources. We're very pro-renewables, but without effective storage, these words are hollow.

That's what I heard around 12 months ago when I met with Energy Storage Canada. I was very encouraged by some of the developments taking place from coast to coast, but even back then, you were concerned about the Liberals' words not meeting actions.

I understand there was an Energy Storage Canada conference back in September. Did any federal Liberals attend it? How did that conference go, by the way?

[Andrew Thiele]

It was a great conference. It was our biggest yet, which is great. That speaks to the growing interest in storage from people across the country and from international partners.

I don't have an itemized attendee list. I'd have to defer that question to Leone, my VP of corporate services, but there was participation by multiple levels of government.

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

What we heard is that no Liberals attended and that it was a bit of words not meeting actions. The importance of becoming an energy superpower without storage is a little ridiculous.

Going on to projects that have failed to get approval across Canada, can you highlight a project that maybe failed to receive approval?

[Andrew Thiele]

I may defer to my colleague Robert to see if he has additional information on that.

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

Sure.

[Robert Tremblay, Policy Manager, Energy Storage Canada]

Thank you, Andrew.

Off the top of my head, I'm not aware of many projects in Alberta that have failed to get approval. I do know that, in Ontario, there's a dynamic where projects must seek municipal resolutions of support, which can be tricky given the timelines and pressure to develop these projects quickly. Of course, it's always incumbent on developers to work with their communities for acceptance as well.

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

It's a layering on of regulations that has stopped some of these important energy storage projects.

Another area where we're lacking as an energy superpower is production. One of the main energy sources is lithium batteries. How much lithium in batteries in Canada is sourced domestically? What is our production and supply chain for the domestically produced stuff?

[Robert Tremblay]

I can jump in there.

It's a tricky question to answer. The supply chain for batteries is quite global. Major producers of lithium are Australia or various countries in South America. As well, there is some from the United States, but the processing for most of the lithium does happen—

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

Would China be on that list as well?

[Robert Tremblay]

My apologies.

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

Is China a larger player in that as well?

[Robert Tremblay]

China is not a very large producer of lithium, but it is a large reformer of lithium. It can then be integrated into cells, either domestically in China or around the world.

A lot of the gap is not necessarily in the extraction of lithium, but in the actual refining of it.

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

We mine it out of the ground, we send it to China to be processed and then we buy it back. Is that somewhat the supply chain for those batteries coming from China?

[Robert Tremblay]

That can be a dynamic. I'd say it's not unique to batteries, either. For rare earth magnets, there are a lot of examples in critical minerals where the refinement is in a concentration.

[Corey Tochor, Conservative, Saskatoon—University, SK]

Do you think it would be important for a country like Canada, with the challenges we face internationally, to have production in Canada? If so, how do we encourage that?

[Robert Tremblay]

The most important thing for Canada to think about is where it wants to fit into a global supply chain. We have a lot of critical minerals, and I think that's an area we can lean into, including refinement, if it's the will of corporations here or the will of the government to support that development.