Conferences have the tendency to echo the most significant changes, themes, and projected trends in industry. The past few weeks had me bouncing between Halifax and Toronto for Marine Renewables Canada and the Ontario Critical Minerals Forum. Two different crowds having the exact same conversations. Canada has what it needs to be a global leader, so what’s stopping us from building big things?

Supply chains are shifting. Countries are looking for stable partners, especially for critical minerals and clean energy. On paper, Canada looks perfect. We have the resources, the technical depth, the experience to follow through, and in many regions, strong relationships with the people who actually live where these projects will happen. What we do not have is speed. Historically, major projects can take close to 20 years to move from concept to construction. At that pace, money doesn’t wait around, it finds another home.

Both events dove into ideas on how to break the pattern of slow projects leading to loss of investment. What came up each time is the implementation of the new federal Major Projects Office (MPO). It was established to bring more predictability to major Canadian infrastructure projects and cut out duplication and red tape. To responsibly expedite financing, federal regulatory approval and serve as a single point of contact for proponents of these projects, as long as they are deemed to be “in the national interest”. It’s early days, but people working across mining, energy, and infrastructure have said this feels like an actual shift, not another hoop to jump through.  

As a company with a vested interest in socioeconomic impacts (it’s kind of our thing), we asked ourselves whether speeding up means cutting corners. This was the one question I heard repeatedly at both conferences will this decrease quality and ultimately, lead to lower engagement with the people.

From what I see, it’s exactly the opposite. Nothing important gets removed from the process, it gets pushed to the forefront to be dealt with upfront. The projects going through the MPO already have deep, long-term relationships in the communities they touch. That didn’t happen by chance. It came from steady conversations, clear commitments, and genuine listening before decisions were made. The people were considered from the get-go. We know that when communities trust the people building something, they can move quickly too. The slowdown traditionally hasn’t been the people; it’s been the process. The red tape and bloating of duplicate processes and procedures.

So, after hearing these discussions from peers across industries, I’m cautiously optimistic. Canada has the resources and proponents are forging the relationships. Right now, we may finally have a path that matches the moment. The next most important question is, will it work as intended? I’m sure we’ll be having this discussion at all the Conferences in 2026!  

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