Canada plans two new energy-related projects. The territory of Ontario will host the world’s largest nuclear power plant, as the ‘Bruce’ power plant will acquire an additional capacity of 4.8 gigawatts, bringing the total capacity of the plant to 10 gigawatts. The second project is for the ‘Darlington’ nuclear power plant, where the plan is to build four small modular reactors of 300 megawatts each. This was commented on by Alex Nestor from the Canadian-Bulgarian Business Network in the show ‘In Development’ with host Veselina Spasova.
The motivation for creating the largest nuclear power plant in Canada is multi-layered, as the government has calculated that in about ten years, the country won’t have enough capacity to provide the necessary electricity. The second motivation is that Canada has committed to having net-zero carbon emissions from its energy sources by 2035.
The country opposes the use of cluster munitions, such as those the US promised to provide to Ukraine for its counteroffensive against Russian forces.
The Canadian government released a statement on Monday that it would not support sending cluster bombs to Ukraine. This is also a commitment of the government, as Canada signed the Oslo Agreement in 2008, which came into force two years later. The agreement includes over 100 countries that declare opposition to the use of this type of weapon, as it causes immense damage both to people and the environment.
Canada’s position shows that the country has an independent foreign policy, but nonetheless remains a loyal member of NATO and supports Ukraine strongly in its fight against Russian aggression.
“The US, Ukraine, and Russia have not signed the Oslo Agreement. They have the right to negotiate as they wish, but I don’t think the condition for cluster bombs will be approved by NATO, as it will require the approval of all members of the Atlantic organization. Canada will not back down from its position, and the same position is taken by Spain, the United Kingdom, and Germany.”
Canada created 60,000 new jobs in June, which is three times more than analysts expected. The labor market in the country is improving despite the unemployment rate increasing from 5.2% to 5.4%.
“This opens the door for the governor of the Bank of Canada, who is expected to raise interest rates by another 25 basis points on Wednesday.”
The three sectors contributing to the new jobs are wholesale and retail trade, as well as manufacturing. Inflation in Canada is trending down, and it’s expected to slow to 3% by the end of the year and reach 2% next year, which is the target set by the Canadian government.
You can watch the entire conversation in the video.
You can find all the guests of the ‘In Development’ show here.