Public input on nuclear power first: minister

Albertans don't share federal Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn's "enthusiasm" for using nuclear energy in oilsands extraction, a provincial cabinet minister says.

"I don't know that Albertans share his enthusiasm," Environment Minister Rob Renner said. "That's why I would suggest that before we go down that route, there would need to be some fairly broad-based public consultation."

On Wednesday, Lunntold reporters he favours using nuclear energy to extract petroleum from the oilsands in Alberta.

"There's great promise in the oilsands for nuclear energy," he said.

"Nuclear energy is emission-free. There's no greenhouse gases. We burn a lot of natural gas to extract that oil from the sands right now. There's great opportunity to pursue nuclear energy, something that I'm very keen on."

Nuclear would be considered: industry

Two serious oilsands players — Husky Energy Inc. and Total SA of France — are publicly mulling overthe nuclear option.

But the Alberta government is not working on any proposals for nuclear power plants in the province, provincial Energy Minister Mel Knight said Wednesday.

Renner said he is not opposed to nuclear power, but other sources of energy may be preferable.

It's too early to say if nuclear power will ever come to the oilsands, said Pierre Alvarez, head of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers.

"If a proposal can be brought forward that meets the timelines associated with oilsands development and the cost requirements, it would be considered," he said.

Alvarez said any nuclear project would have to make economic sense — in other words, it would have to be proven to be cheaper than using natural gas to extract the oil.