Mr. Smitherman said he has been in contact with federal Natural Resources Minister Lisa Raitt, who assured him AECL is still in the bidding process.
Mr. Smitherman, who is also the Ontario Minister of Energy and Infrastructure, said Ontario is AECL's largest client and he is happy to see the federal government taking an interest in the company that supplies Ontario with nuclear reactors.
"As AECL's historic big client... any time the government of Canada is showing a level of interest, we see that as a good thing," Mr. Smitherman said. "There are times in the history of AECL where the government has shown very little interest."
According to the environmental assessment of the Darlington site, reactor construction is supposed to begin in 2010, with the first two of four reactors running by 2016.
This approach will allow the province to have reactors at different ages, so maintenance can be staggered.
"What we're looking for is to have a nuclear fleet," Mr. Smitherman said.
The other two companies bidding for the Darlington project are Paris-based AREVA NP and Westinghouse Electric Company LLC, which has its headquarters in Pennsylvania.
Mr. Smitherman could not say when the contract would be awarded.