CANADIAN OIL MARKETS cheap oil and gas . While the three aren ’ t fungible , they do trade off with one another to an extent . If oil and gas prices remain depressed , however , electrical companies may opt to expand oil and gas-based electrical production . That would bite directly into coal ’ s profit center . Finally , Canadian demand for coal may be set to decline as heavy manufacturers continue to transition overseas . Steel production , famously dependent on coal for energy , has declined significantly in Canada over the last decade . If more metal producers go under or move to Asia , it will be hard for Canadian coal to remain competitive .
Canada remains one of the world ’ s biggest coal producers , but most of its potential export partners are also big coal producers . The United States , for example , is unlikely to buy Canadian imports since it has sufficient domestic production . China has always seemed eager to buy despite its own domestic reserves , but it ’ s trying desperately to control its smog population . Export opportunities don ’ t look promising .
Nuclear
Canada ’ s nuclear energy industry received some very good news lately : the Canadian and Indian governments appear ready to sign a deal promising significant cooperation on building and supplying new nuclear plants in India . Cameco , Canada ’ s largest uranium producer , looks to be the biggest beneficiary from the deal . The company will supply virtually all of India ’ s new uranium demand under the provisions of the new agreement .
However , the domestic nuclear industry continues to suffer from two pieces of recent bad news . First , scientists announced in mid-April the discovery of radioactive isotopes from the Fukushima nuclear disaster on the coast of British Colombia . The news underscores the risks of nuclear energy and may make Canadians even more skittish about supporting power stations near them .
Second , significant congressional opposition to Canada ’ s proposed nuclear waste plan is forming in Washington , D . C . The existing plan calls for Canada ’ s spent nuclear fuel to be stored less than a mile from the banks of the Great Lakes . Without a viable nuclear waste storage proposal , it will be very
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