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EDMONTON — An expansion to the Port of Montreal and work to double liquefied natural gas production in B.C. are among the first five projects under consideration for fast-track approval through the federal government’s new major projects office.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Thursday these are all viable projects “in the national interest” and Ottawa’s new major projects office intends to “move quickly so that these projects can move forward.”
“The proponents behind each of these projects have already done much of the hard work,” Carney told a press conference in Edmonton. “They’ve undertaken already extensive consultations with Indigenous Peoples, consultations that meet the standards of existing legislation.”
The first list includes five projects that will be considered for speedy approval by the major projects office, and another five that require further development.
The projects up for fast-track approval include a first-of-its-kind small modular reactor in Clarington, Ont., a new copper and zinc mine in Saskatchewan and an expansion of the Red Chris Mine copper operation in northwestern B.C.
The projects represent more than $60 billion in investment, Carney said.
The prime minister said the projects he announced are “very advanced” and the new office will help shepherd them past the final regulatory hurdles.
Carney said it’s “no accident” the mining and LNG projects are on the list because they meet environmental goals set out in law.
He said the timeline for granting final approval to the fast-tracked projects will be no longer than two years.
Carney made the announcement at a carpentry training facility in Edmonton, on the final day of the Liberals’ national caucus retreat — where he even picked up a hammer himself at one point and drove a few nails through a board. He failed the first try but persisted until he succeeded.
The Prime Minister’s Office said the LNG Canada Phase 2 project in Kitimat, B.C., would double Canada’s liquefied natural gas production and open a pathway for approval of other LNG projects.
Projects identified for future development include enhancements to the Port of Churchill in Manitoba, a proposed high-speed rail line between Toronto and Quebec City, a 50-gigawatt wind energy project in Nova Scotia and an Alberta-based carbon capture and storage project.
Once complete, Carney said, the carbon capture facility could lead to a “decarbonized” pipeline project. At this point, there is no private-sector proponent for a new oil pipeline.
The projects listed for future development, which include plans for all-weather road projects in Northern Canada to support potential critical mineral development, cover all of Canada’s main regions.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she still wants to see a pipeline built to the B.C. coast and the repeal of laws she said are “impacting the investment climate” in Alberta.
“It’s taking us a little bit of time to work through that but we’re making great progress,” Smith told a news conference Thursday. “I understand that the prime minister is looking for a next tranche of major projects to be announced by Grey Cup and I’m hopeful that by then we’ll be able to have something to share.”
Smith posted on social media Thursday that she had an “exceptionally productive” meeting with Carney on Wednesday and she is “more optimistic than ever that the concerns of Albertans are finally being heard.”
The federal Conservatives were far less enthusiastic. They said Ottawa is blocking many more projects than it’s looking to push through, and argue the new major projects office is nothing more than another layer of bureaucracy.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre said all Carney has done to date is “announce that he’s going to send an email to an office that isn’t even fully staffed up yet, which will one day consider, possibly, approving five projects.”
“This is pathetic,” he said at a press conference in Woodbridge, Ont.
The federal government has not presented a ballpark budget for the office or an estimated number of staff who will work there, despite repeated requests for clarity.
Poilievre said his party will propose legislation in the fall aimed at repealing Justin Trudeau-era laws that he said stifle development, such as the industrial carbon price. The Conservatives supported the accelerated passage of Bill C-5, the Liberals’ major projects bill, in the spring.
Saskatchewan’s Finance Minister Jim Reiter also offered some criticism, saying the new office is only needed because Carney is unwilling to remove “unworkable federal regulations, like the Impact Assessment (Act), brought forward by the previous Liberal prime minister.”
“While we are pleased to see some projects selected, including the Foran Copper Mine in Saskatchewan, I think most Canadians were expecting a more ambitious list of projects given the prime minister’s promise to build ‘at a speed not seen in generations,'” Reiter said in a statement sent to media.
“The omission of uranium projects from the list is extremely concerning, as there are three projects in Saskatchewan that are ready to move forward in the near term.”
Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston and Premier Wab Kinew said they were pleased to see Carney put projects from their provinces on the future development list: Nova Scotia’s Wind West project and Manitoba’s Port of Churchill.
Kinew said he is working with Indigenous leaders to ensure they are on board with further development at the port and he anticipates the next stage beginning this fall.
“We’re making sure our due diligence is strong and questions about the environment are going to be really, really front of mind,” he said. “Over the coming months, I think you’re going to get really excited about the vision as we announce this thing and build it out publicly.”
The major projects office will be tasked with finding ways to help grow the critical minerals sector and secure more investment in such mining projects within the next two years — including the Ring of Fire in Ontario.
A statement from Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s office, sent by spokesperson Hannah Jensen, said the province welcomes Ottawa’s support on modular reactors but “expects that the same streamlined federal approvals will be extended to the new large-scale nuclear facilities Ontario is building.”
The statement said Ottawa “needs to urgently join Ontario in speeding up approvals for critical mineral projects, including by building all-seasons roads to the Ring of Fire.”
Greenpeace Canada contends that Carney should instead be prioritizing housing, the cost of living and addressing climate change, rather than doubling down on LNG exports.
Parliament passed Bill C-5 in the spring to streamline and speed up approvals for large infrastructure projects as the federal government looks to shore up an economy under heavy pressure from U.S. tariffs.
A group of lawyers filed a legal challenge against the new law in Quebec Superior Court, arguing it grants the government excessive power and overrides democratic and environmental safeguards.
Asked about the court challenge in Montreal on Thursday, Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc said Ottawa has “taken note,” but Canadians gave the Liberals a mandate to expedite nation-building projects in the spring election.
“We believe Bill C-5 … obviously is constitutionally valid,” he said. “We will make that case in any court case.”
— With files from David Baxter and Craig Lord in Ottawa
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 11, 2025.
Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press
