An overview of federal government financial involvement in the Canadian nuclear program

The government of Canada has had a financial involvement with the nuclear industry in four areas: nuclear power development, including expenditures for research and development, prototype reactors, and regulation; uranium industry support, including the operations of Eldorado Nuclear Ltd. and the uranium stockpiling program; the financing of nuclear reactors, activities in which the federal government has acted as a banker for the sale of reactors; and heavy water production. Up to 1978-79 total federal expenditures of around $3.4 billion in current collars had been invested. Of this amount, about 56 percent was associated with nuclear power development, 2 percent with uranium industry support, 22 percent with heavy water, and 22 percent with financing reactor sales