The BC Conservatives are going nuclear in their pitch for “energy independence” in B.C.
Unveiling his energy platform Tuesday, BC Conservative Leader John Rustad said his party would amend B.C.’s Clean Energy Act to allow for nuclear power in the province.
The party says it would also launch a review of small modular reactors and seismic safety, with the goal of building the province’s first nuclear plant by 2035.
“It’s time we have an open and honest conversation about how we meet our needs, not just of today, but of tomorrow,” Rustad said.
“We are going to need additional energy in B.C. It is a simple fact. We do not have enough to meet the demands we have and certainly, the demands going forward.”
Along with the nuclear proposal, Rustad would reverse what he calls the NDP’s “radical” electric vehicle and heat pump goals.
The BC NDP has passed legislation requiring all new vehicles sold in B.C. to be zero emission by 2035.
The NDP has also proposed plans to shutter the province’s last gas-fuelled power plant and bar the installation of stand-alone gas home heating systems, both by 2030. The NDP plan would allow some new forms of gas heating, provided it is 100 per cent efficient, such as a dual-fuel system that incorporates a heat pump.
“We need to be realistic about what we create in terms of those demands,” Rustad said.
“Today, for example, with the NDP government’s approach to saying they want every household to have a heat pump or that everyone needs to have an electric vehicle, we do not have the electrical generation to be able to do this.”
The Conservatives say they would “consider all power sources,” and have previously said they would power northwest B.C. with new gas- and wood-waste-fuelled power plants.
The party says it would also conduct a business case analysis for geothermal power, and explore wind and solar power “when the economics make sense.”
The NDP was quick to fire back, saying BC Hydro is already legally required to be energy independent and that under its proposed changes natural gas will still be permitted for home heating.
The party said electricity rate hikes have been kept below inflation over the last six years, and argued nuclear power is five to 10 times more expensive than renewable alternatives like solar and wind.
The Conservatives argue solar and wind power are incapable of providing base-load power the way hydro and nuclear can.
The BC Greens, meanwhile, have promised to invest $20 million a year into small-scale solar projects aiming to have them feed 15 per cent of the grid by 2035. The party says it will ban the use of BC Hydro assets for liquified natural gas projects, subsidize electric heat pumps for low-income households and set sales targets for electric medium and heavy-duty vehicles.
Last year, BC Hydro imported electricity representing about 20 per cent of its total load as persistent drought led to lower reservoir levels than usual.
About 87 per cent of electricity in B.C. is currently generated by hydroelectricity.
Earlier this year, BC Hydro issued the first in a series of calls for new private wind and solar power producers, with the goal of adding 40 to 200 megawatts to the grid by 2028.
The Crown corporation estimates it will need another 3,000 gigawatt hours of electricity annually to feed the growing need for electricity.