'Nation-building' investments in electricity grid needed to reach net-zero, experts say

A price tag in the tens or hundreds of billions of dollars, and a project scope akin to that of the construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway in the 1800s is the scale of investment needed in Canada's electricity grid as the country reaches for net-zero emissions.

That's the scale of the massive investment in Canada's electricity grid that experts say will be required in the near future, as the phase-out of fossil fuel-fired power generation combined with a rapid increase in demand for electricity puts never-before-seen demands on this country's electrical grid.

"The general consensus is that we will need to double or triple the size of our electricity system between now and 2050," said Bruce Lourie, chair of the non-profit advisory organization The Transition Accelerator.

"I don’t think Canadians ... are recognizing or prepared for how monumental a task this is ahead of us.”

The federal government, in its emissions reduction plan released last week, describes the need for "nation building" interprovincial transmission lines if Canada is to have a shot at meeting its climate target of cutting emissions by 40 per cent below 2005 levels by 2030, and net-zero emissions by 2050.