Canada’s Clean Electricity Advantage at Risk as up to $220 Billion in Investment Hangs in the Balance: New SHARE Report

TORONTO, March 2, 2026— Canada is at risk of losing its global competitive edge in clean electricity unless federal and provincial governments act quickly to expand power supply, modernize grids, and accelerate permitting, according to a new report released today by SHARE, a Canadian investor association.

The report, Power at Risk: The Investment Case for a Clean, Competitive Canada, finds that clean electricity constraints, slow infrastructure buildout and policy uncertainty are putting as much as $220 billion in potential capital investment and as much as 80,000 direct jobs at risk across Canada’s economy.

The majority of this at-risk investment—roughly three-quarters—relates to industrial projects dependent on clean power, while the remainder reflects the need for new renewable generation and storage to supply that demand.

Prepared in partnership with Dunsky Energy + Climate Advisors, the report draws on interviews with senior executives across finance, technology, clean energy, mining, and heavy industry, alongside analysis of major industrial and infrastructure projects nationwide.

“Clean electricity is no longer a nice-to-have — it is now central to investment decisions,” said Kevin Thomas, CEO of SHARE. “Canada is in a position of strength, with one of the cleanest electricity grids in the industrialized world. But without faster action from all levels of government, that advantage is eroding, and global capital is ready to go elsewhere.”

The global economy is undergoing a structural shift towards electrification and clean electricity, driven by growing demand from industry and transport, the rapid growth of AI and data centres, and tightening climate and trade rules. Countries that can deliver abundant, reliable, low carbon power stand to gain a long-term competitive edge, attracting capital, jobs and industrial growth.

Canada has benefitted from this shift, with more than $65 billion in clean economy investment since 2021. However, Canada’s ability to attract the next wave of investment is increasingly under pressure.

Utilities across the country are facing unprecedented demand from energy intensive projects, while aging grids and transmission bottlenecks are delaying or cancelling projects. In several provinces, industrial and data centre connection requests now exceed available capacity by wide margins.

As “Power at Risk” outlines, these challenges are resulting in stalled, scaled back, or cancelled projects in many sectors including electric vehicle and battery manufacturing, data centres and AI infrastructure, critical minerals and mining, and heavy industry.

“Our research shows that companies from a range of sectors view Canada’s abundant, clean and low cost electricity as a competitive advantage – and they are increasingly willing to pay a premium. With hundreds of billions of dollars of capital waiting to be deployed, there is a clear opportunity to secure these investments and the related benefits for Canadians,” said Felix Whitton, Consultant, Dunsky Energy + Climate Advisors.

The report identifies five urgent actions that governments must take to protect Canada’s competitiveness and unlock clean-economy growth:

1. Provide long-term, coordinated federal-provincial policy certainty to give investors confidence in electricity supply, costs and carbon policy.
2. Accelerate the buildout of clean generation, storage, and transmission, ensuring supply keeps pace with industrial demand.
3. Deliver faster, clearer, and more transparent permitting and interconnection processes to reduce uncertainty and delays.
4. Strengthen Indigenous partnerships to improve project certainty, financing, and long-term success.
5. Enable demand side solutions and flexible power procurement tools to lower costs and improve system reliability.

Canada still has an historic opportunity to lead in the global clean industrial economy, but the window is closing as other countries expand their clean electricity offerings.

“Clean electricity is one of Canada’s most powerful economic assets,” said Thomas. “The challenge we face is whether Canada can move fast enough to protect it, or whether we allow power constraints to become the bottleneck that costs Canada the next generation of investment and jobs.”

For more information or to arrange an interview, contact Amanda Panacci, Account Director at Media Profile amanda.panacci@mediaprofile.com.