Ontario fast-tracks northern transmission

Ontario is moving ahead with a faster approval path for two major northern transmission builds as electricity demand tied to mining, electrification and remote-community connections rises across the province. The Ford government has already used special designations to push forward the Barrie-to-Sudbury line and the Greenstone line, and in April added the Red Lake line to that list. The province says the projects are needed to relieve bottlenecks and support industrial growth in the north. The Independent Electricity System Operator, or IESO, has also published planning work that points to a larger buildout still to come. ### Which projects has Ontario actually fast-tracked? Ontario’s Ministry of Energy and Mines posted a decision on February 9, 2026 to facilitate two new Barrie-to-Sudbury transmission lines through orders and a minister’s directive under the Ontario Energy Board Act. The decision designates Hydro One Networks Inc. as transmitter and requires the Ontario Energy Board to treat the project as needed when it assesses whether construction is in the public interest. The Environmental Registry notice says Phase 1 is a new single-circuit 500-kilovolt line running about 290 kilometers from Essa Transformer Station near Barrie to Hanmer Transformer Station in Sudbury, with an in-service target of 2032. The same notice says Phase 2 would be a second 500-kV line on the same corridor, though the IESO has not set an in-service date for that second line. (ero.ontario.ca) Ontario posted a separate decision on January 28, 2026 for the Greenstone Transmission Line, a new single-circuit 230-kV line designed to support a second circuit from near Nipigon Bay toward Longlac and Aroland First Nation. That decision also streamlines the Ontario Energy Board review by declaring the project a priority and naming Hydro One as transmitter. (ero.ontario.ca) Stephen Lecce, Ontario’s energy and mines minister, said on April 23, 2026 the province had also declared the Red Lake transmission line a priority project and designated Hydro One to develop and construct it. The province described that project as a new 162-kilometre double-circuit 230-kV line through Dryden, Ear Falls and Red Lake. (ero.ontario.ca) ### Why is the province pushing transmission in the north now? The Ontario government said northern demand is being driven by mining expansion, electrification and new industrial projects. In the Barrie-to-Sudbury announcement, the province said northern Ontario’s grid was built for smaller, dispersed loads and now faces a bottleneck as demand changes. (news.ontario.ca) The same release said energy demand in the north alone is expected to rise 81% by 2050, and cited reports projecting 41 potential new mines by 2033. Sam Oosterhoff, associate minister of energy-intensive industries, said the new lines are part of Ontario’s plan to meet growing electricity demand across the province. (news.ontario.ca) The Red Lake release gave a more localized forecast. Ontario said electricity demand in that region could rise as much as 525%, from about 120 megawatts today to more than 750 megawatts by 2050, driven by community growth and mining development. ### What does the IESO say the Barrie-Sudbury line would add? (news.ontario.ca) The IESO said on October 9, 2025 that its Northern Ontario Bulk Plan recommended a new 270-km transmission line between Sudbury and Barrie to be in service by 2032, plus preservation of a right-of-way for a possible second line. The system operator said those steps would increase transfer capability from south to north by 1,500 MW and from north to south by 1,000 MW. (news.ontario.ca) The Environmental Registry decision uses a slightly different project description, listing the route as about 290 kilometers between Essa and Hanmer transformer stations. The province and IESO documents describe the same core objective: easing congestion between northern and southern Ontario and preparing the system for future growth. ### How does Indigenous participation fit into the buildout? (ieso.ca) Ontario’s Barrie-to-Sudbury release said the project is moving ahead in partnership with Eabametoong First Nation, identified by the province as ECFN. The government said Indigenous leadership and partnership are central to the project’s development. (ero.ontario.ca) The April 23 Red Lake release said First Nations communities will be able to use Hydro One’s equity partnership model, which provides up to a 50% equity stake in the new transmission line once construction is complete. The province also said the accelerated approval path is intended to let development work and engagement with Indigenous communities continue sooner. (news.ontario.ca) The IESO’s Northern Ontario Connection Study also ties transmission planning to remote-community connections. The study says 17 of 27 remote First Nation communities in northwest Ontario have already been connected through the Wataynikaneyap Transmission Project, one more is under a feasibility study, and options are being examined for the remaining nine. (news.ontario.ca) ### What still has to happen before more lines are built? The Ontario Energy Board still has to review project costs and reliability impacts even after a priority designation, according to the Greenstone decision notice. The province’s orders remove the need to prove need again, but they do not eliminate all regulatory approvals. The IESO said its separate Northern Ontario Connection Study submitted a preliminary report in December 2024 and will publish a final report later, with timing still to be determined. (ieso.ca) That study is examining transmission options across a region stretching more than 1,000 kilometers and demand scenarios ranging from 50 MW to 500 MW by 2050. (ero.ontario.ca) Hydro One’s Barrie-to-Sudbury project page says the utility is completing development work for a second new 500-kV line and that the IESO will determine a recommended in-service date for that second line. For now, the clearest dated milestone in the province’s northern transmission buildout is the first Barrie-to-Sudbury line’s 2032 in-service target. (hydroone.com) (ieso.ca)