Building Canada Act’s First Chapter, Mapped

An interactive map that shows PM Carney’s Building Canada Act first batch of projects, highlighting Indigenous partnerships and future trade infrastructure.

On 5 September, The Globe and Mail obtained a draft list of 32 major infrastructure projects that could be candidates for fast-track approval under the new Building Canada Act¹. The document, which sources said was circulated within Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada, included projects such as a new oil pipeline from Alberta to the Pacific Coast, to offshore wind farms off Nova Scotia.

Six days later, Prime Minister Mark Carney stood in Edmonton and announced just five projects had made the cut².

These questions are now hanging in the air: where are the others? What happens next?

On A Fast Track

Before examining what made the cut, it's worth understanding the urgency behind these announcements.

The Building Canada Act passed in June as Donald Trump's trade policies created fresh uncertainty for Canada's economy. What would usually take months or years of consultation and regulatory review was compressed into a summer sprint.

• June 26: Building Canada Act receives Royal Assent
• August 29: Major Projects Office launches
• September 5: Internal government list surfaces
• September 10: Indigenous Advisory Council formed
• September 11: First five projects announced

That's less than three months from legislation to launch.

Why These Five?

According to the announcement published on the Prime Minister's website, the selection criteria were straightforward.

These projects had "already done much of the hard work" through extensive Indigenous consultations meeting existing legislative standards, provincial government buy-in, and regulatory milestones achieved.

LNG Canada Phase 2 will double the world's second-largest LNG facility, targeting "Asian and European partners" with emissions 35% lower than global competitors.

Darlington Nuclear makes Canada the first G7 nation with operational small modular reactors, creating 18,000 construction jobs whilst positioning Canada as a global SMR technology leader.

Contrecoeur Container Terminal expands Port of Montreal capacity by 60%, strengthening the St. Lawrence trade corridor that European investors know well.

McIlvenna Bay Copper Mine partners with Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation to supply critical minerals for clean energy manufacturing. It's expected to be Canada's first net-zero copper project.

Red Chris Mine Expansion increases Canada's annual copper production by 15% through partnership with Tahltan Nation, whilst creating a conservation area "the size of Greece."

The common thread connecting these is that they're setting up critical minerals and clean energy exports, particularly to global markets beyond the United States.

So, this is Canada's response to Trump's unpredictable trade policies. Stop relying on the unreliable neighbour. Diversify trading relationships. And build infrastructure that connects Canadian resources to global markets, particularly Europe and Asia.

International Markets In Focus

The five projects are deliberately oriented toward diversifying Canada's trade relationships beyond the United States.

Churchill Port expansion will provide "increased and diversified trade with Europe" through Hudson Bay shipping routes, while Contrecoeur strengthens the existing St. Lawrence trade corridor that European investors know well.

LNG Canada Phase 2 could reshape multiple international relationships. The project specifically targets "Asian and European partners" with Canadian gas that produces emissions 35% lower than global competitors. 

LNG Canada's existing facility just welcomed its first import cargo earlier this year³, with the Maran Gas Roxana arriving for equipment testing ahead of export operations beginning in 2025. Europe is actively seeking LNG alternatives, and Canadian gas can answer that demand.

For Asian markets with climate commitments, low-carbon Canadian gas provides a pathway to meet emission targets while maintaining energy supply. The LNG expansion could generate several billion dollars in additional annual export revenue once operational, while Darlington SMRs position Canada in a global market projected to reach $100-150B by 2040.

Indigenous Ownership Changes the Game

What separates these projects from typical government infrastructure announcements is the presence of Indigenous involvement in most of them. The Haisla Nation holds majority ownership in HaiSea Marine, which provides services to LNG tankers at the Kitimat facility. Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation partners on the McIlvenna Bay copper project. The Tahltan Nation works with Red Chris mine expansion.

So much Indigenous participation is in there. Most of these partnerships are built into the project economics from the ground up.

"Working in close collaboration with the Tahltan Nation, it is an important step in reconciliation and further developing the potential of Northern British Columbia," the government said of the Red Chris expansion.

Aside from the five confirmed projects, Carney also spotlighted six concepts at earlier development stages. But unlike the first five, which had completed most regulatory hurdles, these concepts still need to go through consultation and environmental assessment work.

And these early “transformative concepts” too feature Indigenous involvement. The Arctic Economic and Security Corridor requires consultation across multiple Arctic communities. Port of Churchill Plus emphasises partnership with Manitoba's Crown-Indigenous Corporation and prioritises Indigenous equity ownership.

What November Brings 

Carney promised the next batch by the Grey Cup in November. Those six "transformative concepts" are already under review and highly likely to get approval once consultation and regulatory work catches up.

The leaked list included high-profile projects like the Northwest Coast Oil Pipeline from Alberta to the Pacific Coast, offshore wind farms off Nova Scotia, and the Mackenzie Valley Highway in the Northwest Territories. These didn't make the cut despite strong regional support.

Are they next? Probably. The oil pipeline still needs to address coastal First Nations concerns, which explains its absence from the consultation-ready first five. The offshore wind projects and northern transport corridors align perfectly with Canada's critical minerals strategy and Arctic sovereignty priorities, so these could well surface in November's announcements.

What's next will probably focus on projects that serve Canada's longer-term strategic goals: connecting northern critical mineral deposits to global markets, establishing Arctic infrastructure for both economic and defence purposes, and creating alternative energy export routes that bypass American territory entirely.

Everything remains fluid at this stage, and the pace is dizzying, but there's genuine momentum behind this infrastructure push that’s worth watching closely.