Nuclear power and the push for small modular reactors (SMRs) in Canada explained
By: Ryan Workman
As Canada’s demand for electricity rises and the appetite for non-emitting technologies grows, nuclear power, including traditional reactors and small modular reactors (SMRs), has become a key part of the power generation conversation.
The primary advantage of nuclear power is that it is a source of reliable low-emissions electricity.
Unlike wind or solar, a nuclear facility produces consistent baseload power regardless of weather conditions and uses significantly less space for that power generation.
Nuclear power in Canada
Canada is a Tier 1 Nuclear Nation, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency, “with over 60 years of experience with nuclear energy and a full-spectrum supply chain.” We are also the second largest producer of uranium globally. Canada qualifies as a Tier 1 Nuclear Nation due to its “full spectrum of nuclear capacities, including research reactors, power reactors, manufacturing, and research and development.”
As of 2025, four commercial nuclear power plants in Ontario and New Brunswick produce approximately 15 per cent of Canada’s electricity.
It is Canada’s ambition to be the first country in the G7 with an SMR, and the third globally after only Russia and China, who each have one operational SMR as of 2026.
Ontario, New Brunswick, Saskatchewan and Alberta released a joint strategic plan for the deployment of SMRs in 2022.
What are nuclear reactors?
A nuclear reactor is a device that maintains a nuclear chain reaction, an ongoing reaction of splitting atoms.
This process generates heat, which turns water into steam and drives a turbine. Uranium is the fuel for this reaction – it is uranium atoms that are continuously split.
What are SMRs?
SMRs are advanced nuclear reactors that have approximately one-third the generating capacity of traditional nuclear reactors. They are:
- Small – relative to traditional nuclear reactors, producing up to 300 megawatts of power – enough to power a small town but not a large city;
- Modular – which makes it possible for systems to be produced in factories and installed on site; and
- Reactors – meaning they harness nuclear fission.
Beneath this umbrella there are many kinds of SMRs (up to 70 concepts, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency) currently competing for potential implementation. For example, China’s HTR-PM reactor is a “high-temperature gas cooled pebble-bed reactor” – it is cooled by helium and fueled by graphite “pebbles” containing uranium rather than traditional fuel rods. Russia’s KLT-40S, by contrast, uses pressurized water.
Are SMRs dangerous?
SMRs can be designed to be very low risk.
For example, NuScale’s Power Module is designed so that passive processes (processes that do not require power or supervision) prevent a meltdown – in the event of a blackout or emergency, a facility will simply shut down on its own.
However, the proliferation of different designs will require robust regulatory processes to ensure that projects are properly reviewed.
What are the potential advantages and disadvantages of SMRs?
The global need for power continues to increase, as does the need to find sources of power that do not emit greenhouse gases. Nuclear provides significant amounts of power without emitting greenhouse gases, but it is also hugely expensive, produces toxic nuclear waste and comes with the risk of a meltdown.
SMRs have a few advantages over traditional nuclear facilities. Their smaller size and modularity may reduce costs, and their smaller energy output enables a wider variety of applications. For example, they can be deployed into small communities or remote industrial facilities.
SMRs also have some disadvantages. They are a new technology which faces regulatory uncertainty and unproven economic returns. Like traditional nuclear reactors, they still produce radioactive waste and produce more relative to their output than larger facilities.
Ryan Workman is a Policy Analyst with the Canada West Foundation.