Could nuclear power solve the Yukon’s energy problem?

By Caitrin Pilkington – CBC

Officials from Ontario and the Yukon have signed an agreement that marks “the first step” toward deploying small modular reactors in the Yukon – technology they say could help solve the territory’s energy crisis. 

“We know our electricity grid is nearing capacity, and we’re expecting demand to increase,” Ted Laking, Yukon’s minister of energy. “So these needs are actually going to get more urgent for us. We need to start coming up with solutions.”

Small modular reactors are, as the name implies, smaller than a full-scale nuclear plant. They can be built in factories and transported to communities in need of energy.