The Ontario government has declared the Greenstone Transmission Line project as a priority, accelerating construction of a 230-kilometre power line that will run from Nipigon Bay to near Aroland First Nation.
In a shot at the recently imposed U.S. tariff regime, the province says the project will create more than 7,000 jobs and has vowed that it will use Canadian resources and labour wherever possible. The Ministry of Energy and mines says that so far 93 per cent of the project’s costs have stayed within in the country.
“We are putting Canada first by accelerating a plan to create 70,000 jobs supporting the Ring of Fire,” Stephen Lecce, Ontario’s minister of energy and mines, said in a press release.
“With President Trump’s economic assault on our country, Ontario is officially giving the greenlight to build the Greenstone Transmission Line, delivering the energy backbone and infrastructure to unlock the Ring of Fire’s vast mineral potential.”
The Ring of Fire, a mineral-rich expanse in the James Bay Lowlands of Northern Ontario, has emerged as one of Canada’s most significant untapped mining frontiers, holding major deposits of chromite, nickel, copper and other critical minerals. Located roughly 500 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay, the region is viewed as a potential economic engine due to its vast reserves and the growing global demand for materials essential to clean technology and manufacturing, with $22 billion in projected economic output over 30 years.
“Ontario has what the world needs as a reliable and stable democratic partner, and that is why we are unlocking one of the largest undeveloped, high-grade deposits of critical minerals on earth,” Lecce said.
Governments and industry have taken early steps toward development, including streamlining environmental approvals through a “One Project, One Review” process and advancing plans for all‑season road access, though progress remains slow amid regulatory, environmental and Indigenous‑rights challenges.
Scheduled for completion in 2032, Greenstone is expected to provide capacity to unlock 350-700 megawatts of additional hydroelectricity and other power generation, the province said. The 230-kilometre single-circuit 230 kV transmission line, designed to support a second circuit, will run from the East-West Tie near Nipigon Bay, connect to a new station near the Longlac Transformer Station, and extend north to terminate at a new Switching Station in or near Aroland First Nation.
“We are very proud to work with our fellow communities to develop the Greenstone Transmission Line,” Aroland First Nation Chief Joseph Gagnon said. “Our community and the communities we are working with have been plagued by unreliable and inadequate energy resources for our region limiting growth and opportunities. This will create more reliable energy for our membership and eventually to the communities to the North.”
Electricity demand in Northern Ontario is projected to increase by 81 per cent by 2050 as development progresses.
“As outlined in our Shared Prosperity Agreement with Aroland First Nation, we are working in lockstep with First Nations leadership to power the North, supercharging economic growth and meet electricity demands for generations to come,” Greg Rickford, MPP for Kenora-Rainy River and Ontario’s minister of Indigenous affairs and First Nations economic reconciliation, said in the release.
Rickford, who is also the province’s minister responsible for Ring of Fire economic and community partnerships, said the power line will reduce reliance on diesel, advance economic reconciliation and help unlock the mining region.
