Canada must build more electricity generation in the next 25 years than it has over the last century in order to support a net-zero emissions economy by 2050, according to a new report from the Public Policy Forum.

Reducing our reliance on fossil fuels and shifting to emissions-free electricity to propel our cars, heat our homes, and run our factories will require doubling, or possibly tripling, the amount of power we make now, the federal government estimates.

It’s going to cost a lot – most estimates are in the trillions. It’s also, the report said, going to require the kind of cross-jurisdictional co-operation, Indigenous consultation and speed of decision-making and construction that Canada just isn’t very good at. On average it takes more than four years just to get a new electricity generating project approved by Ottawa, and more than three years for new transmission lines.

There are significant unanswered questions about the new power mix, and the speed of switching away from fossil fuel power is one of the biggest political battles brewing in the country. All provinces have or are in the process of declaring their power plans for the next 30 years.