Canadian Premier's threat to cut off US power as Trump starts trade war

President Donald Trump initiated a trade war with Canada and Mexico on Tuesday, one day after Ontario Premier Doug Ford said he is ready to curtail electricity exports to the US in response to potential tariffs.

“If they want to try to annihilate Ontario, I will do everything — including cut off their energy with a smile on my face,” Ford said in Toronto.

Except for a 10% tariff on Canadian energy, all imports from Canada and Mexico, the two largest US trading partners, face a 25% duty. The US also imposed an additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports.

Ontario electricity exports keep the lights on for 1.5 million homes and businesses in multiple US states, mainly in New York, Michigan, and Minnesota, according to Statistics Canada. Most of it is clean energy generated by hydro, nuclear, and wind plants.

Ford said if Trump “wants to destroy our economy and our families, I will shut down electricity going down to the US. They rely on our energy. They need to feel the pain. They want to come at us hard, we’re going to come back twice as hard.”

Trump said the tariffs were his administration’s response to Canada and Mexico, its two largest trading partners, not doing enough at their borders to stem illegal flow of synthetic opioid fentanyl into the US.

Neither is China, a major source of precursor chemicals that Mexican cartels and other criminal gangs use to produce the powerful narcotic, he added.

Ford did not say when Ontario could pull the plug on electric power exports, noting the federal government is “leading the charge” in Canada’s response, which came shortly after the US tariffs took effect.

Canada imposed 25% tariffs on $30bn worth of US goods although did not specify which commodities and products were affected. In 21 days, the tariffs would cover $125bn of imports.

The US clean energy sector is a leading consumer of Canadian aluminum, critical minerals, more available metals, and steel. Canada also is a minor supplier of blades for offshore wind turbines and towers for those onshore.

In a statement, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said there was “no justification” for Trump’s decision to impose tariffs, noting that less than 1% of fentanyl intercepted at the US border comes from Canada.

He added his government has implemented a C$1.3bn ($895m) border plan to stop the flow of fentanyl, appointed a “fentanyl czar,” and established a Canada-US joint strike force on organised crime.

Most recent data in 2023 shows the US imported $3.2bn worth of electric power from Canada, 30% less than the previous year because a drought reduced hydroelectric production.

On average the US imports at least 3.3TWh of power each month from multiple Canadian provinces. The US also exports much lesser amounts of electricity to Canada to help balance requirements in both countries.

Power transmission lines linking the US and Canada are part of a complex and highly interconnected power system, with ties spanning from New England to the Pacific Northwest.

Those connections help smooth delivery of power within three of the four main interconnections in North America, which helps ensure system reliability and access to economical supply sources.