Earlier this month Merran Smith, president of New Economy Canada joined electricity and economy experts Andrew Leach (University of Alberta), Michael Powell (Electricity Canada) to speak with Ben Woodfinden and Tyler Meredith on the special MBP Intelligence Briefing on Powering Canada Strong, Canada’s new national electricity strategy. Listen below or read on for a summary of Merran’s key remarks. 

Canada’s economic future will be powered by electricity.

That may sound obvious, but it reflects an important shift in how we think about energy policy. For years, electricity was discussed primarily through the lens of climate action. The federal government’s new National Electricity Strategy signals something bigger: electricity is now a competitiveness, productivity, sovereignty, and affordability issue. In short, it’s an economic issue. 

The industries expected to drive Canada’s next wave of growth—from critical minerals and advanced manufacturing to data centres and artificial intelligence—depend on abundant, reliable, affordable electricity. And increasingly, access to power is becoming a deciding factor in investment decisions. Investors, developers, and manufacturers need confidence that electricity will be there when they need it.  
 
The strategy’s commitment to roughly double Canada’s electricity system by 2050 is ambitious, but if Canada is serious about growth, there is no alternative. We cannot power tomorrow’s economy with yesterday’s grid.  

Electricity is the tool. Electrification is the goal. 

One of the strategy’s most important ideas is also one of the easiest to overlook: building more electricity supply is not the end goal. Electrification is. 

The real economic value comes from using electricity to power industries, vehicles, buildings, and communities more efficiently. Electrification — the process of switching from older, fossil-fuel-powered technologies to more modern and efficient electricity-powered technologies — improves affordability, strengthens energy security, boosts competitiveness, and reduces emissions. 

Canada’s electricity system is already among the most affordable and cleanest in the world. Our competitive advantage lies in using that electricity to replace more expensive, volatile and less efficient forms of energy across the economy. 

While the strategy rightly focuses on expanding electricity supply, equal attention must be paid to accelerating electrification and the productivity gains it can unlock.  

Building a made-in-Canada opportunity 

Canada has the raw materials, the workforce and the industrial capacity to contribute to the supply chain needed for electrification.  

As countries around the world expand their own electricity systems, demand will grow for processed critical minerals, clean materials, grid equipment, industrial electrification technologies, and electricity management software.  This creates an opportunity not only to build infrastructure at home, but to develop expertise and products that can be exported globally. 

By prioritizing Canadian resources, workers and companies, the strategy can help create long-lasting careers and new products that face growing demand.   

Success hinges on cooperation and execution

Electricity planning has traditionally occurred province by province, with infrastructure built in response to confirmed demand. That approach made sense in a slower-growth environment. Today, demand is rising from multiple directions at once as industries electrify, populations grow, and new sectors such as advanced manufacturing and digital infrastructure emerge. 

Provinces, utilities and regulators need to shift toward a mindset of building for future growth. Underbuilding now carries real economic risks. If businesses cannot access the electricity they need, investment, jobs, and economic opportunities will go elsewhere. 

Canada will also need stronger interprovincial collaboration. Some of the greatest opportunities to improve reliability, affordability, and resilience lie in improving connections between provincial grids and enabling greater electricity trade across the country. 

At the same time, building a larger electricity system will require a larger workforce. Electricians, powerline technicians, engineers, construction workers, and many other skilled trades will be central to this effort. Expanding training opportunities and apprenticeship pathways should be viewed not only as a workforce challenge, but as an economic opportunity that can create stable, high-quality careers across the country. 

The next chapter starts now 

The National Electricity Strategy acknowledges a reality that is becoming increasingly clear: Canada’s economic future and its electricity future are inseparable.  

But strategies don’t build infrastructure. People do. 

The real work begins now—mobilizing investment, training workers, building infrastructure,  and ensuring electrification delivers tangible benefits for Canadians. Success will not be measured simply by how much new electricity we generate. It will be measured by whether that electricity helps create a more productive, competitive, and affordable economy.