Ontario Power Generation (OPG) has submitted the Initial Project Description for New Nuclear at Wesleyville (NNW) in Port Hope to the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada (IAAC). This is the first step in advancing the project through the necessary, multi-phased impact assessment (IA), as OPG explores the potential for large-scale new nuclear generation at its Wesleyville site. A 99-page Summary of the Initial Project Description, New Nuclear at Wesleyville in Port Hope, is available on the IAAC website.
The IA process is led by IAAC in collaboration with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) and will include an assessment of potential impacts and will explore how adverse effects could be mitigated. It also provides another opportunity for stakeholders, and the public to share their perspectives and views.
OPG worked closely with the Michi-Saagiig Anishnaabeg Nations of the Williams Treaties First Nations (MS-WTFN) to ensure their collaborative input to the document. The IPD also incorporates early input from the Municipality of Port Hope, where the proposed project is located, and perspectives gathered through OPG’s early engagement efforts in the community.
In November 2024, the Ontario Government asked OPG to assess three of its existing sites, including the Wesleyville site, located in Port Hope, Ontario, to determine whether there’s interest on the part of Rightsholders and municipalities to explore the potential for new generation.
In early 2025, the Ontario government asked OPG to explore the potential for new nuclear generation at its Wesleyville site to help meet the growing demand for electricity in the province. The site, which is already zoned for electricity generation, is well-suited to support a large new nuclear site and is located near existing transmission, road, and railway infrastructure. The IPD has been developed based on a range of potential nuclear technologies that could be deployed at the site, totalling up to 10,000 MWe.
The Town of Port Hope has expressed its interest to explore the potential for new nuclear generation at OPG’s Wesleyville site. OPG is also exploring its Nanticoke and Lambton sites for generation potential to help meet Ontario’s growing demand for electricity.
For 45 years, OPG’s Wesleyville Generating Station has sat dormant, with its powerhouse and smokestack serving as landmarks along the Lake Ontario waterfront near Port Hope. In the late 1970s, OPG’s predecessor company, Ontario Hydro, began building the oil-fired station. However, construction stopped in face of the 1979 oil shock and recession.
For decades, OPG maintained the site to ensure it is available should Ontario needs to build a new power source. OPG also enacted a biodiversity programme to conserve and protect portions of the site. With Ontario’s electricity demand set to grow by 75% by 2050, Wesleyville is attracting renewed interest. It is one of three sites, along with Lambton and Nanticoke, that OPG is exploring with municipalities and First Nations for potential new generation.
At Wesleyville, the Town of Port Hope and First Nations have expressed an interest in the potential for new nuclear generation. “OPG is pleased to engage with First Nations and the Town of Port Hope to explore the potential for new nuclear power generation at our Wesleyville site,” said Nicolle Butcher, OPG’s President & CEO. “We are committed to a transparent, thorough process with many opportunities for input, and to building strong relationships and partnerships with host communities, neighbours, and First Nations on whose traditional territory we operate.”
As a first step, OPG and the Province of Ontario will ensure the municipality and First Nations have the necessary resources and capacity funding to participate in a multi-year process to assess the site. This work will help identify a suitable generation technology and complete a range of Impact Assessment activities.
According to the Conference Board of Canada, a potential nuclear development would contribute CAD235bn ($169bn) to Ontario’s GDP over an estimated 95-year project life, which includes design, construction, operation, and maintenance. It could also support 10,500 jobs across Ontario, including 1,700 new jobs in Port Hope, representing a 15-20% increase in overall employment levels in the local area.
“As we move ahead with site exploration, OPG will strive to listen to the priorities, concerns, and hopes of all stakeholders and rights holders involved,” Butcher affirmed. “And we will only advance development with their express support. We commit to taking this same approach at our sites in Nanticoke and Lambton as we continue discussions with communities to determine their support for new generation opportunities there.”
A specific reactor technology has yet to be chosen for the NNW Project. Examples of reactor technologies which have been considered include:
- Pressurised Water Reactor – Westinghouse’s AP1000 and EDF’s Evolutionary Pressurised Reactor (EPR);
- Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor – Candu such as Atkins Realis’s Candu Monark;
- Boiling Water Reactor – GE-Hitachi’s BWRX-300.
These are not reactor technologies which have been chosen for the NNW Project but are representative examples. Technology selection will consider and seek to reduce, and mitigate, where possible, real and potential impacts to the rights of the WTFNs.
