NUCLEAR MYTHS,
BUSTED.
False. They already do!
Renewables already keep the lights on in many places around the world. Manitoba and Quebec get more than 99% of their electricity from renewable sources, while Denmark gets 88%.
Here in Ontario, the Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) has shown that wind, solar and energy storage can meet our growing electricity needs at a lower cost than building new nuclear reactors.
Renewables are proven, reliable, fast to deploy and increasingly affordable.
False. Ontario’s electricity demand is 10% lower today than it was in 2005, and renewable energy can meet future growth at a lower cost than new nuclear power.
While electricity demand is expected to increase in the coming decades, wind, solar, hydroelectricity and energy storage can meet that growth quickly and affordably.
Efficiency improvements and smart technologies can further reduce demand and lower costs for consumers.
Ontario can meet future electricity needs without relying on expensive new nuclear projects.
False. The world is investing far more heavily in renewable energy than nuclear power.
While some governments continue to promote new nuclear projects, renewable energy is driving almost all growth in global electricity generation. Wind, solar and battery storage are being deployed faster, at lower cost and on a much larger scale than new nuclear power.
The reason is simple: cost. Nuclear projects are often delayed and over budget. In Ontario, every nuclear project has exceeded its original budget, including the Darlington refurbishment.
Even China, one of the few countries still building some nuclear power, is adding renewable energy far faster than nuclear. In 2024, China installed roughly 200 times more renewable energy capacity than nuclear.
The global energy transition is being led by renewable energy, not nuclear power.
False. Renewable energy would require only a tiny fraction of Ontario’s land and water resources.
Solar farms capable of meeting 100% of Ontario’s electricity needs would occupy just 0.4% of the province’s land area. Much of that power could also come from rooftops and parking lots. In Toronto alone, rooftop and parking lot solar could supply more than half of the city’s electricity needs.
Offshore wind in the Great Lakes could also meet Ontario’s electricity demand. The lakebed footprint of the turbines needed to power the province would be less than one square kilometre.
Ontario has abundant space and resources for renewable energy. The challenge is not finding room for solar and wind – it’s choosing to build them.
False. Ontario Power Generation says it still needs to spend another $3.3 billion to keep the refurbished Darlington reactors operating until 2055.
While the Ontario government has claimed the refurbishment was completed ahead of schedule and under budget, OPG’s application to the Ontario Energy Board includes an additional $3.3 billion in spending for major Darlington projects. According to OPG, these expenditures are necessary to ensure the safe operation of the Darlington Nuclear Station until 2055.
These costs include:
• $359 million for steam generator moisture separator replacements;
• $350 million for generator stator rewinds; and
• $2.6 billion for turbine rotor replacements.
Whether these costs are labelled “additional” or not, Ontario ratepayers will still have to pay them. They highlight the uncertainty and financial risks that come with large nuclear projects.
The bottom line: the Darlington refurbishment is costing billions more than originally advertised.
False. Ontario does not have an approved permanent storage facility for highly radioactive nuclear waste.
The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) is proposing a Deep Geological Repository in northwestern Ontario, but the project has not been approved and faces significant opposition from local communities and First Nations.
The NWMO also does not have an approved plan for transporting highly radioactive waste from Ontario’s nuclear stations to the proposed site.
In the meantime, highly radioactive waste is being stored at nuclear stations on the shores of the Great Lakes.
The reality is that Ontario is still searching for a long-term solution to its nuclear waste problem.
False. Nuclear power is becoming more expensive while renewable energy is becoming cheaper.
New nuclear reactors take decades to build and carry significant cost and schedule risks. Renewable energy, storage and efficiency can be deployed much faster and at a lower cost.
Ontario has made expensive bets on the wrong energy technologies before. We shouldn’t repeat that mistake.
Now is the time for affordable, fast-to-build renewable energy.
False. Climate change is an urgent problem, and nuclear power is too slow and expensive to solve it.
New nuclear projects take a decade or more to build, while renewable energy projects can be deployed in months or a few years. Renewables are also far less expensive, allowing us to reduce more emissions for every dollar invested.
To tackle climate change, we need the fastest and most cost-effective solutions available. That’s renewable energy, storage and energy efficiency – not new nuclear power.