One of These Times It Will Work

For anyone who has tracked the business community in this province for more than 20 years, the weekend’s announcement by three Canadian premiers on nuclear reactor development was Back to the Future.

Back in the early 90’s AECL – Atomic energy of Canada – established a Saskatoon office with the same concept in mind: to develop a smaller scale reactor compatible with the power grid in provinces like this one. The office was a breath of fresh air at the time, creating some optimism in an economy that was in the doldrums. In fact, when the office was ultimately closed down due to a lack of commitment from the Romanow government, business optimism took a big hit.

Now, the concept is back on the table with Scott Moe among the leading proponents of a small scale reactor system, something that could fit nicely into Saskatchewan’s power grid as we move to replace coal plants. And, as one of the world’s largest uranium producers, this is would give us one more link in the value chain of the nuclear industry.