Natural Resources committee  The federal government obviously is contributing through the ITCs that have been raised in other programs. I think that in budget 2023 alone we saw a commitment of $40 billion over the next decade to help facilitate the provincial transition, and that's an important amount of money.

Natural Resources committee  We're in the process, as you know, of updating the draft regulations. They will be published later this year, and we intend to publish a final cost-benefit analysis. Our draft regulation amount was a $70-billion cost between now and 2050, with an overall net benefit of close to $30 billion, so the benefits were greater than the costs over that period.

Natural Resources committee  I said $70 billion.

Natural Resources committee  Those are two separate numbers. The $400 billion is the estimated system cost as a whole. The $70 billion is the amount, the increment, of the CER, the clean electricity regulations.

Natural Resources committee  Not necessarily. It depends on the jurisdiction. Some jurisdictions, such as Alberta, have privately run electricity systems. We have a mixed system in Ontario. It depends on the jurisdiction.

Natural Resources committee  If could just add, there's no path to net-zero emissions by 2050 without a clean grid. It is going to be the primary alternative to a fossil fuel-based economy. Electrification is a crucial part of the climate plan. It's foundational.

Natural Resources committee  I'll answer that. All G7 countries have now committed to net-zero electricity as part of their broader net-zero plans. It's pretty clear what's happening in the United States with the Inflation Reduction Act and the recent U.S. clean power regulations released by the U.S. administration.

Natural Resources committee  I'll jump in quickly. You said within 11 years, but that statistic is more like a 2050 horizon, or at least that's what I think the Canada Energy Regulator is looking at. It's more of a long-term demand requirement of two to three times more electricity. That accords, of course, with population growth, economic growth and increased consumer demand, as the member rightly pointed out.

Natural Resources committee  I think there are several sites under development across jurisdictions.

Natural Resources committee  Bruce Nuclear is one of North America's, if not the world's, biggest nuclear facilities. I think the Ontario government has announced plans to increase its capacity. There are a number of others.

Natural Resources committee  Sure. The short answer to that question is it's going to have to come from a variety of sources. If I could just add—

Natural Resources committee  I'm just going to state the obvious: Provincial system operators are actively planning for this. They run the grids in provinces, and they are actively planning this.

Natural Resources committee  I think it's publicly known that Alberta has announced some regulatory and market reforms to their energy-only market. Yes, they have experienced a significant number of blackouts and, I think, level 3 NERC alerts. I think they've had 11 in the last few years. I think that there's an acknowledgement on the part of the provincial government that some reforms are needed to the energy-only market.

Natural Resources committee  I think you raised coal. In the case of coal, the Government of Saskatchewan and the Government of Alberta have committed to phase out coal, to get off coal. I think the last coal unit in Alberta is going to be shuttered in the coming months. We are on a much faster track in terms of phasing out coal than anyone ever expected would happen.

Natural Resources committee  I can assure the member that safety is actually a huge part of the conversation and one that is not lost on us. It's one that will be addressed, and is being addressed, in the context of developing the regulation. In particular, you'll note in the proposed draft regulation that was published there were provisions made for the use of peak power and the use of natural gas to address peak power needs.