Canada After Coal: Challenges Remain

Canada continues to make impressive progress toward coal phase-out goals. But 2030 is not long away.

Ontario, Manitoba, and Alberta successfully phased out coal-fired generation. Nova Scotia and New Brunswick have firm plans to reach the 2030 goal. Saskatchewan remains a significant outlier, with one CCS-abated plant that meets federal regulations and two plants that have no definite plans in place.

So, what happens next, and is Canada able to meet this 2030 deadline?

For a more in-depth look, read Will Canada’s Coal Phaseout Meet Its 2030 Deadline?, by Lucas Bettle.

Remaining Obstacles

There is no question that Saskatchewan remains the biggest obstacle to the national coal phaseout goals. The two major coal plants still have no firm plans for retiring, converting, or developing emissions mitigation systems in time.

One Saskatchewan facility uses carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology. CCS mitigates emissions so the facility meets current federal requirements.

Differences between provinces make the national decarbonization efforts more complicated.

Various Provinces Move from Coal to Cleaner Options

Every province faces a series of unique challenges from existing infrastructure and energy resources. So, they adopt specialized strategies to move away from coal-fired power to cleaner options.

• Nova Scotia has plans for the retirement of some coal plants and the conversion of others to natural gas or alternative fuels.

• New Brunswick is in the process of pursuing biomass conversion with advanced wood pellets.

• Alberta successfully converted the Genesee station from coal to natural gas.

  
  

Will Replacing Coal with Other Fossil Fuels Be Enough for Canada?

There is no question that switching from coal-fired power generation to using natural gas will reduce emissions. But not to zero. Natural gas does still produce greenhouse gas emissions.

With Canada's broader goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, natural gas is only a short-term solution. Upcoming Clean Electricity Regulations come into effect in 2035 to impose even stricter emissions standards.

Conclusion

Canada and the provinces continue to make remarkable progress reducing coal-fired electricity generation. Most provinces seem to be on target to meet the 2030 deadline, with some uncertainty remaining on how Saskatchewan will need to pivot to achieve the goal.

Phasing out coal is a critical milestone in Canada’s clean energy goals, but more is required to meet the net-zero clean energy transition commitment.