Blue Green Canada Director’s Chris Severson-Baker (Pembina Institute) and Sari Sairanen (Unifor) co-authored this editorial on the federal government’s announced electricity strategy framework in the National Observer.

Click here to Blue Green Canada’s opinion editorial 

The federal government’s announced electricity strategy framework recognizes a simple but important reality: Affordable, reliable and abundant electricity — and the electrification of our lives and industries — is essential to Canada’s economic future. Whether it is supporting the energy needs of a growing population, processing critical minerals or powering AI, electricity is increasingly the foundation of economic resilience. 

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Building this future will require new and expanded power sources, transmission, storage and technologies. It represents an opportunity to strengthen Canada’s economic competitiveness, improve energy security and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But infrastructure alone will not determine whether the strategy succeeds.

A successful electricity strategy should include an implementation plan that helps promote and preserve high job quality standards already evident in much of the industry. Public investments should create good, unionized jobs with benefits, opportunities for apprenticeship and training and pathways to long-term careers to support Canadians through challenging economic circumstances and higher costs of living.

Watch this space for Blue Green Canada’s submission to National Resources Canada on the federal government’s Powering Canada Strong Strategy.