Canada's energy sector is entering a new phase – defined not by a single commodity or policy shift, but by an electricity imperative reshaping investment across the entire market. In this Lexpert Special Edition on Energy, we examine three of the most consequential legal fronts: the accelerating development of small modular reactors, the sweeping regulatory reforms enabling major energy projects, and the forces reshaping energy mergers and acquisitions.
Small modular reactors move from policy to project
Canada's nuclear sector has reached an inflection point. Small modular reactors are moving from policy ambition into active project development, driven by what Vivian Kung, a partner at Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP in Toronto, describes as "almost insatiable electricity demand from electrification, data centres and AI."
Mark Johnson, co-head of the national energy group at McCarthy Tétrault LLP in Toronto, frames the scale of that demand. "Everybody needs a lot of power," he says. "Nuclear provides effectively a low-carbon – depending on how you measure it – or no-carbon solution for significant continuous power." Ontario Power Generation's SMR project at Darlington is expected to be the first operational SMR in a G7 country within five years – proof, Johnson says, that the push is "getting people excited about building big things in Canada again."
Regulatory reform and a new push to fast-track energy projects
Canada's federal and provincial governments have moved aggressively to dismantle the approval bottlenecks that have long stalled major energy projects. The Building Canada Act enables cabinet to designate qualifying projects as national interest, unlocking fast-tracked regulatory approvals – but that is only "one piece of the puzzle," says Katie Slipp, a partner at Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP. "The current mindset is really an 'all of the above' approach to building out the national energy mix – that includes oil and gas, renewables, other forms of energy. There's this suite of policies in place to try to facilitate that type of development."
At the provincial level, Alberta's Expedited 120-Day Approvals Act runs multiple permitting processes simultaneously. Laura Estep, a partner at Dentons Canada LLP in Calgary, calls it single-window decision making – not "about skipping the homework" but "about grading the work that's been done concurrently rather than passing the paper from one government desk to another."
Energy M&A enters a new era of scale and infrastructure
Canada's energy M&A market is evolving well beyond the consolidation wave that has defined much of the past decade. "The market is certainly robust," says Peter Danner, co-head of the national energy practice at McCarthy Tétrault LLP in Calgary. "We're seeing continued demand for quality assets and a willingness among buyers to pursue strategic acquisitions where the long-term fundamentals make sense."
The electricity imperative is reshaping where deals are heading. Kurtis Reed, head of the energy group at Stikeman Elliott LLP in Calgary, expects substantial investment in natural gas-fired electricity projects to power the data centres being planned for Alberta and Saskatchewan. Ashley White, head of the energy industry team at Bennett Jones LLP, agrees: "A lot of it ties back to data centres. Natural gas remains an important part of the story, but so do utilities and the infrastructure needed to deliver reliable electricity."
The road ahead
Across all three areas, legal counsel has never been more consequential – or the issues more complex. Whether advising on SMR deployment, navigating fast-track approvals, or structuring transactions across a broadening energy value chain, Canada's top-ranked energy lawyers are helping define what the country's energy future looks like.