Canadian investors are using their self-directed Tax-Free Savings Account (TFSA) contribution room to build portfolios of stocks that can provide retirement income to complement CPP, OAS, and other pension earnings.
One popular strategy for creating retirement income involves owning stocks with good track records of dividend growth.
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TC Energy
TC Energy (TSX: TRP) trades near $89 per share at the time of writing. The stock has recovered some lost ground in recent weeks, but still sits well below the $100 it hit earlier this year. Investors who missed the previous rally can take advantage of the pullback to pick up a dividend yield of close to 4% today.
TC Energy recently reported solid Q3 2026 results. Comparable earnings came in at $1 billion, or $0.94 per share in Q3 versus $0.8 billion, or $0.77 per share in the same period last year. The business has performed well through the first nine months of 2026, and management recently increased the anticipated earnings guidance.
Capital investment in 2026 is on track to be in the $6 billion range with 2027 expenditures targeted at between $6 billion and $7 billion. TC Energy has $40 billion in new projects under consideration that should extend the growth outlook. As such, TC Energy expects to generate 5% to 7% compound annual EBITDA growth over the next five years as the new assets are completed and go into service.
TC Energy is set to benefit from the rise in demand for natural gas, both at home and abroad. The company intends to double capacity on its new Coastal GasLink pipeline, which carries the fuel from producers to the new LNG Canada export site on the coast of British Columbia. TC Energy is also expanding its infrastructure in the United States, where a surge in natural gas demand is on the way as new gas-fired power generation facilities are built to provide power for AI data centres.
TC Energy increased the dividend in each of the past 26 years. The strong capital program should support ongoing dividend hikes.
Enbridge
Enbridge (TSX: ENB) is another Canadian energy infrastructure company with operations in both Canada and the United States. The firm is best known for its extensive oil pipeline network that moves roughly 30% of the oil produced in the U.S. and Canada. These assets remain strategically important for Enbridge. The company has recently shifted acquisition capital back to this segment amid more favourable pipeline policy and rising global demand for North American oil.
In the past few years, however, Enbridge worked to diversify its revenue stream to take advantage of other emerging opportunities in energy markets. The company purchased an oil export terminal in Texas for US$3 billion and then spent US$14 billion to buy three American natural gas utilities. The gas assets turned Enbridge into the largest operator of natural gas utilities in North America. These businesses generate steady rate-regulated revenue that leads to predictable cash flow.
Enbridge’s current capital program sits at $38 billion. Earnings contributions from the projects will help drive earnings higher in the next few years. This should enable the board to continue raising the dividend. Enbridge has increased the distribution annually for the past 31 years.
ENB trades near $68 per share at the time of writing, compared to $80 a few months ago. Investors who buy the dip can get a 5.7% yield right now.
The bottom line
TC Energy and Enbridge pay good dividends that should continue to grow. If you have some cash to put to work in a TFSA focused on dividends, these stocks deserve to be on your radar.
