OTTAWA – Prime Minister Mark Carney is in Terrace, British Columbia, on Thursday to announce a new set of major projects that the government will submit for possible expedited approval. This initiative is part of the government's efforts to streamline the approval process for key infrastructure projects across Canada.
A source from the Ontario government revealed to The Canadian Press that the Crawford Nickel Project will be included among the submissions Carney is forwarding to the newly established Major Projects Office. Ontario Premier Doug Ford expressed his satisfaction regarding the inclusion of this project, while also lamenting the slow progress of other critical initiatives. He emphasized the need to advance the Ring of Fire, a group of mineral-rich lands located in northern Ontario.
In Premier Ford's words, "Let’s get out of our way when it comes to the Ring of Fire." He went on to highlight the importance of investment in large-scale nuclear energy projects, questioning whether these topics would arise in the forthcoming announcements.
In addition to the Crawford Nickel Project, the federal government is expected to announce a hydroelectric project in Iqaluit, Nunavut, that is also up for potential fast-track approval. According to a source familiar with the government's planning, this project has already received millions in federal funding aimed at engineering and design. It is intended to enable Nunavut's capital to reduce its dependence on diesel power generation.
According to reports by CBC News, other projects slated for announcement include the Sisson Mine in New Brunswick, the Nouveau Monde Graphite Phase 2 project in Quebec, and the Ksi Lisims liquefied natural gas project. The Ksi Lisims project, located near Terrace, is anticipated to produce 12 million tonnes of LNG annually, targeting markets in Asia that are increasingly expressing demand for liquefied natural gas.
This will be the second round of announcements regarding projects for fast-track consideration since Carney unveiled the initial five projects two months prior. Critics from the Conservative Party labeled the first list as "low hanging fruit," remarking that the development of those projects was already well underway. That initial list included the expansion of the Montreal port, a small modular nuclear plant in Ontario, a liquefied natural gas facility expansion in British Columbia, and two mining projects in Saskatchewan and British Columbia.
During a recent appearance before the House of Commons standing committee on environment and sustainable development, Major Projects Office CEO Dawn Farrell discussed the criteria for project reviews. She noted that the stage of a project’s development would be a significant factor in its evaluation. "One of the challenges I think we’ll face is that many of these projects are not what I call ready for prime time. They’re way far off in the future, or they’re much further down the road in terms of their execution," Farrell stated. She emphasized the necessity of focusing on projects that can be executed within a shorter timeframe.
To date, no project has received the national interest designation, which would afford it special treatment by exempting it from certain environmental laws and regulations. These include the Fisheries Act, the Species At Risk Act, and the Impact Assessment Act. When a project is submitted to the Major Projects Office for review, it is subsequently returned to the government with recommendations. The government then holds the final authority regarding the national interest designation.
The establishment of the Major Projects Office was one of Prime Minister Carney's initial actions following his election victory earlier this year. The federal budget recently presented proposes an investment of $213.8 million over five years to support the office's operations. Additionally, the government plans to introduce legislation to elevate the office into a separate entity, similar to a Crown corporation, moving it out from the oversight of the Privy Council Office.
