Clean Power and Low Carbon Fuels

Clean power and low carbon fuels are crucial for Canada to meet climate goals. The majority of electricity generation in Canada comes from non-greenhouse gas emitting sources and Canada is a world leader in hydroelectricity, nuclear power and hydrogen. Wind and solar photovoltaic energy are the fastest growing sources of electricity in Canada, while biofuels and electric vehicles also play an important role in reducing the climate impact of transportation in Canada.

Learn more about Clean power and low carbon fuels in Canada in Section 5 of the Energy Fact Book including:

Clean technology and electricity mix

Renewable energy

Biofuels and Transportation

Key facts

• In 2020 Canada produced 636 terawatt hours of electricity.
• 68% of Canada’s electricity comes from renewable sources and 83% from non-GHG emitting sources such as solar, hydro, wind and nuclear power.
• Canada is the world’s third largest producer of hydroelectricity. 60% of Canada’s electricity comes from hydroelectric sources.
• In 2021, Canada was the world’s third largest producer and fifth largest exporter of uranium. Nuclear power plants generate about 15% of Canada’s electricity.
• Canada exports about 8% of the electricity it generates to the United States.
• Transportation GHG emissions decreased by 14% from 2019 to 2020 largely due to impacts caused by the pandemic.
• In 2021, electric vehicle (EV) registrations made up 5.2% of total vehicle registrations. Over 86,000 plug-in EVs were registered in 2021, over four times the number of registrations as in 2017.