Under the leadership of Dawn Farrell, Canada’s new Major Projects Office is considering a number of priority projects to help fast-track through existing regulatory frameworks.
They include both projects that are under way and ones that are looking for proponents in the private or public sector.
The list of five projects announced in September and six projects announced Thursday – all of them perceived by the MPO as vital to nation-building – includes new or expanded developments in energy, port infrastructure, critical minerals mining and public infrastructure. They represent billions of dollars’ worth of investment.
The government also announced there are “several strategies” for potentially “transformative” projects that require further development. These include an upgrade to the Port of Churchill and high-speed rail between Toronto and Quebec City.
These are Carney’s new major projects, and some of them won’t be easy
Prime Minister Mark Carney appointed Dawn Farrell as CEO of the Major Projects Office in August.Amber Bracken/The Canadian Press
Projects referred to MPO in September
LNG Canada Phase 2
Location: Kitimat, B.C.
LNG Canada has five foreign co-owners and is considering an expansion phase to its existing export facility that would make it the second-largest LNG facility in the world.
Located on the traditional territory of the Haisla Nation, the export terminal has an initial capacity of 14 million tonnes a year, which would double under Phase 2. Ottawa estimates the project would bring $33-billion in private capital.
It has been referred to MPO for consideration as the co-owners decide whether to proceed with the project. While prospective costs are unclear, Phase 1 of the project had cost about $48.3-billion, including building the terminal, the Coastal GasLink pipeline and other costs.
LNG Canada prepares to start second processing unit in B.C.
The existing Darlington Nuclear Generating Station in Ontario in 2023.Carlos Osorio/The Globe and Mail
Darlington New Nuclear Project
Location: Clarington, Ont.
Even before it was added to the major projects list, the Darlington New Nuclear Project had been in development for years by its owner, Ontario Power Generation.
The MPO is only considering Phase 1, the first of four 300-megawatt small modular reactors, or SMR, envisioned for the main Darlington site. It would be the first operational SMR in a G7 country, according to the MPO.
In the 65 years after completion of the unit, the Prime Minister’s Office estimates it could generate $500-million a year in revenue and clean power for 300,000 homes, and provide 3,700 jobs annually. The facility is already under construction, and is scheduled to be finished by 2029.
Ontario’s Darlington SMR project to cost nearly $21-billion, significantly higher than expected
The Contrecoeur Marine Terminal in Contrecoeur, Que., in August.Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press
Contrecoeur Terminal Container Project at the Port of Montreal
Location: Contrecoeur, Que.
With hundreds of millions of dollars already pledged by the governments of Canada and Quebec in investments and loans, this Port of Montreal expansion project has been in the planning stages for years.
The $2.3-billion facility at Contrecoeur, located downstream from Montreal, would expand container handling capacity by about 60 per cent and help diversify Canadian exports away from the United States.
Port of Montreal chief executive Julie Gascon says the project would generate 8,000 jobs during construction, and 1,500 on an ongoing basis. However, the project does not have environmental approval and could put the habitat of the endangered copper redhorse fish species at risk. Furthermore, critics are concerned that a Dubai-based partner has been tapped to build and run cargo operations for four decades.
McIlvenna Bay Foran Copper Mine Project
Location: Hanson Lake, Sask.
More than halfway complete, the east-central Saskatchewan mine endeavours to be Canada’s first net-zero copper project, and proponent Foran Mining Corp. will also mine zinc on the site.
The company aims to extract 4,900 tonnes of ore a day in the first phase of the underground mining operation. Production is slated to begin in mid-2026, and copper from the mine will be smelted in Quebec. The project gained the support of the Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation in 2023, and the Prime Minister’s Office says 400 jobs will be created.
Canadian critical minerals miner Foran raising $200-million, a rare financing for a junior company
Red Chris Mine Expansion
Location: Iskut, B.C.
The current Red Chris copper mine will be expanded under the proposal, shifting from open-pit mining to an underground block cave operation. This is expected to extend the mine’s lifespan by at least 10 years, and increase annual copper production by more than 15 per cent.
The expansion will cost $2.6-billion and employ up to 1,500 workers during construction and 800 when it goes into operation. The government says the Tahltan Nation is collaborating on the project, which still needs final financing.
Reality check: The first ‘major projects’ for fast-tracking are already on the fast track
Projects referred to MPO in November
A worker at the BC Hydro Skeena Substation in Terrace, B.C., on Nov. 13, 2025.ETHAN CAIRNS/The Canadian Press
North Coast Transmission Line
Location: Prince George to Terrace, B.C.
B.C. is expecting energy demand in the northwest of the province to explode, with a raft of critical minerals mines and other resource projects at various stages of development. As such, the National Coast Transmission Line, or NCTL, is being touted as key to expanding the delivery of hydroelectric energy to this region. Construction on twinning existing power lines is expected to begin in 2026, according to B.C. Energy Minister Adrian Dix. Costs have been estimated at $6-billion. In a provincial effort to fast-track renewable energy and infrastructure developments, B.C. passed Bills 14 and 15 in May, though both were criticized for allowing reduced scrutiny on environmental concerns and potential Indigenous title violations.
North Coast B.C. electrification
Transmission lines
Existing (500 kV)
Existing (287 kV)
1
2
Proposed (500 kV)
Potential future lines
Stations
Existing substation
Capacitor station site
Study areas for transmission projects
Glenannan to Terrace
Prince George
to Glenannan
B.C.
B.C.
Aiyansh
Prince
Rupert
Walcott
Terrace
Palling
Skeena
Prince
George
Rupert
Telkwa
Minette
Glenannan
Saranovich
Williston
1. The proposed transmission line routes have not been determined. Where possible, they are expected to be adjacent to existing lines.
2. Future transmission lines’ voltage not yet determined.
SOURCE: BC HYDRO
North Coast B.C. electrification
Transmission lines
Existing (500 kV)
Existing (287 kV)
1
2
Proposed (500 kV)
Potential future lines
Stations
Existing substation
Capacitor station site
Study areas for transmission projects
Glenannan to Terrace
Prince George to Glenannan
B.C.
B.C.
Aiyansh
Prince
Rupert
Walcott
Terrace
Palling
Skeena
Prince
George
Rupert
Minette
Telkwa
Glenannan
Saranovich
Williston
1. The proposed transmission line routes have not been determined. Where possible, they are expected to be adjacent to existing lines.
2. Future transmission lines’ voltage not yet determined.
SOURCE: BC HYDRO
North Coast B.C. electrification
Transmission lines
Stations
Study areas for transmission projects
Existing (500 kV)
Existing (287 kV)
Existing substation
Glenannan to Terrace
1
2
Proposed (500 kV)
Potential future lines
Capacitor station site
Prince George to Glenannan
B.C.
B.C.
Aiyansh
Walcott
Terrace
Prince
Rupert
Palling
Skeena
Prince
George
Telkwa
Rupert
Glenannan
Minette
Saranovich
Williston
1. The proposed transmission line routes have not been determined. Where possible, they are expected to be adjacent to existing lines.
2. Future transmission lines’ voltage not yet determined.
SOURCE: BC HYDRO
Ksi Lisims LNG
Location: Pearse Island, B.C.
Rockies LNG, Western LNG and the Nisga’a Nation have proposed building a floating facility for liquefaction and export of natural gas off the west coast of B.C. near Prince Rupert. The project also includes a proposal for a connecting, 800-kilometre Prince Rupert Gas Transmission pipeline. Together the facilities and infrastructure have been estimated to cost $22-billion to build, with an expected export capacity of 22.4-billion cubic metres per year of natural gas. The MPO says Ksi Lisims will be a low-emissions LNG operation, “with emissions 94 per cent below the global average,” and it cleared environmental assessment hurdles in September. However, two Indigenous groups, the Lax Kw’alaams Band and the Metlakatla, oppose the project, which sits on their traditional territory.
Ksi Lisims LNG’s expected major project status puts spotlight on First Nations dispute
Canada Nickel is developing the Crawford nickel-cobalt project near Timmins, Ont.Canada Nickel
Crawford Nickel Project
Location: near Timmins, Ont.
The Canada Nickel Company has long been working toward construction of a mine on the world’s second-largest nickel reserve in Northern Ontario. Since 2019, it has engaged with the Taykwa Tagamou Nation to move the project forward. The First Nation is now an investment partner with a seat on the board of the company. The nickel-cobalt mine will operate for at least 40 years, providing nickel to Canada’s EV battery industry and so-called “green steel” makers. The proponent is targeting late 2027 for mine production, and it touts the project as potentially having a net-negative carbon footprint.
Canada Nickel raises $20-million from Ontario First Nation in groundbreaking financing
Nouveau Monde Graphite’s Matawinie Mine
Location: Saint Michel des Saints, Que.
Demand for graphite in the West is high as China, which controls most of the world’s battery-grade graphite, has clamped down on exports. As such, private-sector investments in Nouveau Monde Graphite in recent years have been intended to help the supply chains of Western EV makers become less reliant on China. An open-pit graphite mine in Quebec caught the attention of the MPO and, along with a refinery in Bécancour, has the potential to draw an estimated $1.8-billion in investment and create more than 1,000 jobs. The company says the facilities will cost $1.5-billion to build, and production could begin in 2027.
GM, Panasonic strike deals to buy EV battery materials from Quebec’s Nouveau Monde
Northcliff Resources’ Sisson Mine
Location: Sisson Brook, N.B.
After the closure of this country’s last tungsten mine in 2015, the proposed Sisson Mine in New Brunswick, northwest of Fredericton, could return Canada to the list of countries that produce the critical mineral. Most of it is produced in China. Tungsten is an element that helps fortify the strength and hardness of steel, while molybdenum, another ore that proponent Northcliff Resources hopes to tap at the mine, has similar properties. The Sisson Mine received federal environmental assessment approval in 2017, but since then its construction has been delayed while financing has been secured and negotiations with local First Nations have continued through different provincial government regimes. In 2017, the project was expected to create 300 long-term jobs and cost $579-million to build.
Iqaluit Nukkiksautiit Hydro Project
Location: near Iqaluit, Nunavut
The introduction of a hydroelectric facility in Nunavut would replace diesel-generated electricity in the City of Iqaluit with a reliable green alternative. The project’s proponent, an Inuit-owned developer called the Nunavut Nukkiksautiit Corp., hopes to build a dam on the Kuugaluk River that would generate 15 to 30 megawatts of electricity. It has the support of the national organization, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, whose president, Natan Obed, met with Mr. Carney in July and was reassured that Inuit treaty rights would be respected.
Inuit leader identifies renewable power, airstrip upgrades among priority projects
Projects requiring further development
Alto High-Speed Rail
Location: Toronto to Quebec City
Canada is the only G7 nation without high-speed rail, which the government hopes to correct with a new railway from Québec City to Toronto, though this project is at an early development stage.
Running trains at speeds up to 300 kilometres an hour would cut travel times by 50 per cent and could save 25 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. According to the MPO, the project could result in 63,000 units of housing along the route and create 51,000 new jobs over 10 years.
On its website, the MPO adds that its role would be to accelerate work in permitting, engineering and regulations, with a target to begin construction within five years. In February, The Globe reported that costs of the railway are being estimated at $60-billion to $90-billion.
Port of Churchill Plus
Location: Churchill, Man.
An ambitious expansion of the Port of Churchill in Manitoba has no proponents currently, but the MPO lists it as a “transformative project” nevertheless. The project would upgrade the port and adjacent rail line and see the installation of roads, an energy corridor and marine ice-breaking capacity. A pillar of the strategy is to involve Indigenous groups in the ownership of the project.
Manitoba sees opportunity in the Port of Churchill. Industry experts aren’t sold