NANTICOKE—A proposed energy project, potentially nuclear, is moving positively toward becoming a reality, according to Haldimand Mayor Shelley Ann Bentley.
Bentley provided The Press with an update on her recent attendance at the Canadian Nuclear Association Conference in Ottawa, where she met with Minister of Energy and Mines Stephen Lecce for the second time to discuss clean energy and how Haldimand County can “potentially” help out with Ontario’s energy shortage.
“As for Haldimand being a potential site for new energy-producing projects in Ontario, Council fully supports the development of nuclear energy within the Nanticoke Industrial Area,” said Bentley.
She is referring to a unanimous Council vote on December 16, 2024 in support of a motion that recognized the potential of nuclear energy to address Ontario’s forecasted energy shortfall while simultaneously contributing to the local economy.
The lands under consideration, owned by Ontario Power Generation, are the previous home of the Nanticoke Generating Station, a coal-powered plant that was shut down in 2013 and subsequently demolished, with a 44-megawatt renewable energy-generating solar facility installed in 2019.
In an online post, Bentley said that her conversation with Lecce focused on clean energy and “how Haldimand County can potentially help out with Ontario’s energy shortage.”
She elaborated, “A nuclear plant can not only provide a clean, safe source of energy to meet growing demands, but has great economical potential for the community, including job creation and making significant contributions to the local tax base. While it is very early stages, we expect to learn more from the province regarding potential next steps in the coming months and will keep the community informed as we receive updates.”
The potential facility, one of three sites being looked at alongside Port Hope and St. Clair, is part of the provincial plan to address a forecasted 75% increase in demand by the year 2050.
Bentley laid out the process that would be involved in surveying the site should the proposed project move forward, starting with detailed feasibility analyses, key stakeholder consultation, and engagement with both First Nations and Haldimand Council.
“Assuming a positive feasibility analysis is the outcome, we would expect there would then be broader public consultation either prior to or concurrent with a detailed environmental assessment (EA) process,” said Bentley. “The EA process – which is the provincial framework for assessing the impacts of a project on the natural, socio-economic, and cultural environments – would consist of multiple phases that would include rigorous technical assessments, likely including natural heritage, archaeological, traffic, air emissions, hydrogeological, etc.”
Should that process yield a satisfactory result, the process would advance to the permitting and license processing phases, including site plan application and building permit applications at the municipal level, while any licensing (including Environmental Compliance Approvals) would be completed at upper levels of government.
“Nuclear power plants are federally regulated by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) and the EA process would follow the federal requirements. Haldimand has experience with this process having been through it before in 2008 with the proposed Bruce Power Nanticoke New Nuclear Power Plant Project,” said Bentley. “I look forward to exploring these opportunities and having further discussions with the province.”
