‘Elbows up’ means ‘lots of things,’ energy minister says after pressed on U.S.-based nuclear contract

Yahoo News, Catherine Lévesque, Wed, November 26, 2025

OTTAWA — Pressed on a Crown corporation’s decision to award a contract to a U.S.-based joint venture for the management of the country’s nuclear laboratories, Energy Minister Tim Hodgson suggested his government’s promise of “elbows up” can mean “lots of things.”

The National Post first revealed in June that critics were sounding the alarm on the recent decision by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) to award a contract to sole bidder Nuclear Laboratory Partners of Canada Inc. (NLPC) — a joint venture led by U.S.-based BWXT — for the management and operation of Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL).

CNL includes mainly Chalk River Laboratories, the birthplace of the CANDU reactor.

Critics raised national security concerns about giving access to Canada’s homegrown nuclear technology to companies involved with the U.S. Department of Defence at a time when Canada’s sovereignty was seemingly under attack by the Trump administration.

It appeared to be also contrary to Prime Minister Mark Carney’s “elbows up” campaign promise, even though AECL awarded the contract independently from the government.

NLPC is spearheaded by Virginia-based BWXT — an important supplier to the U.S. Defence Department. The other partners are Amentum — also based in Virginia — and Kinectrics Inc. — a company based in Toronto but bought by BWXT earlier this year.

Its key subcontractor, Ohio-based Batelle Memorial Institute, is the world’s largest research and development organization and manages national laboratories, including for the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security…………………………………………………………………………………………………..

Are you against any American company operating in Canada?” the minister asked Tochor, adding that he does not think that view is “consistent” with Conservative thinking.

Tochor shot back: “I think it’s consistent with the ‘elbows up’ campaign you just ran.”

Hodgson replied that “‘elbows up’ means lots of things.”

“Elbows up means negotiating with all of the countries in the world, doubling our exports, creating alternatives to Americans. That’s what we’re doing,” he said.

Tochor also mentioned that the Competition Bureau announced last week it has expanded its investigation into BWXT’s acquisition of Kinetrics in determining whether the transaction is likely to prevent competition in Canada’s live-saving medical isotopes………………………………………………………………………………………….. https://ca.news.yahoo.com/elbows-means-lots-things-energy-202224637.html