Is Alberta's workforce ready for the challenges of nuclear power?

Nuclear power in Alberta is becoming less and less of a distant possibility and more of an energy reality.

Small and large-scale nuclear energy projects have been part of the energy conversation in Alberta since 2021.

That's when former United Conservative Party premier Jason Kenney signed a memorandum of understanding with the premiers of Ontario, New Brunswick and Saskatchewan to explore small modular reactors (SMRs).

Calgary-based company Energy Alberta has been working on a proposal for a new large-scale nuclear project in Alberta's Peace Region since late last year.

Reactors will require a workforce qualified to design, build and operate and experts say Alberta is well-positioned to rise to the challenge. But why?

The Alberta advantage

Alberta's strong oil and gas sector has primed a path for workers in that industry to get trained to work in the nuclear field, said Agatha Ojimelukwe, dean of the school of energy and natural resources at NAIT.

Post-secondary institutions across the province also produce graduates ready to join the energy workforce, she said.

"The fact that we have that expertise, it just means that we can do so much more with that new energy system in ways that other provinces may not be able to do," Ojimelukwe told CBC News in an interview. 

She said oil and gas work under stringent safety standards, another thing that lends itself well to working in the nuclear industry. 

Ojimelukwe said programs at NAIT have a tight relationship with industry, and that helps the institution align their programming with the latest goings-on in energy production.

NAIT's apprenticeship enrolment stood at 7,000 in 2022-23, up from about 6,500 the year before. More than 1,950 apprentices graduated from their NAIT programs in 2022-23.

"The heart of what we do is making sure that the companies that we support have the talent, right? And our students have the competencies," she said.

The Alberta government has made a point of trying to attract skilled tradespeople to the province. Earlier this year, the government announced it would offer a one-time, $5,000 refundable tax credit to tradespeople who move to the province in 2024 and file that year's taxes in Alberta.

In May, Advanced Education Minister Rajan Sawhney told CBC News that boosting training to tackle Alberta's labour shortage is her top priority.

"I have been told that we need double what we have right now, in terms of the number of tradespeople who are working in Alberta," she said at the time.

Ojimelukwe used the hydrogen industry as an example of how places like NAIT have adjusted their programming to meet the need. There's no need to reinvent the wheel, she said. Small adjustments in curriculum go a long way. 

The advanced education ministry did not answer specific questions about how it may be preparing for the possibility of nuclear energy in the province. It pointed instead to a previous statement given to CBC from the affordability and utilities ministry. 

In it, the ministry said it hopes that vigorous engagement will help determine the future of nuclear power in Alberta. 

From start to finish

Before nuclear power plants even come online, there are many steps that need to happen. 

Mostafa Yakout, U of A assistant professor in the mechanical engineering department, said design engineers, physics engineers and manufacturing engineers will be involved before a shovel ever breaks ground. 

"Our graduates in mechanical engineering, for example, all of them understand the fundamentals," Yakout said in an interview. 

"But what we need to add to our curriculum for example, to be sure that our students understand, is there different types of requirements? What are the precisions and the requirements for those types of reactors?"

Maintenance engineers need to know how to run small nuclear reactors. Waste management specialists need to be brought on. Most importantly, Yakout said, are safety engineers.

He said the public understandably has hesitations about nuclear power because of its history. It's a clean source of energy, but the safety requirements have to be stringent. 

"But again, all of those areas that I'm saying are not new," he said. Yakout agreed that Alberta is well-positioned to answer the nuclear call, given the energy sector's longevity and experience in its workforce.

"We need to learn from the experts. There's no other way."

Yakout, too, mentioned the oil and gas industry's long-standing safety codes and regulations as a model. 

"Those took years to develop," he said. "We have to start now, otherwise we'll be behind after one year. We have to start to think about, what will be the regulations, what will be the codes needed."