4 Canadian Nuclear Reactors To Be Refurbished For An Additional 30 Years of Service.

[NNadir]

Ontario minister confirms Pickering refurbishment plans

Subtitle:

The provincial government is supporting Ontario Power Generation (OPG) to go ahead with the refurbishment of units 5-8 at the Pickering nuclear power plant. OPG will now begin the initiation phase of the project.

Excerpts:

Announcing the government's support for the plan, Ontario Minister of Energy Todd Smith said refurbishing the four Candu units would enable the plant to produce "at least" another 30 years of safe, reliable and clean electricity while creating thousands of new jobs. "With global business looking to expand in jurisdictions with reliable, affordable and clean electricity, a refurbished Pickering Nuclear Generating Station would help Ontario compete for and land more game-changing investments," he said.

The government is supporting OPG's CAD2 billion (USD1.5 billion) budget for the initiation phase of the project, which will include engineering and design work as well as securing long-lead components to ensure materials are available when needed and to help keep costs down. OPG and its business partners will also identify potential Indigenous engagement opportunities in contracting, employment and other economic benefits related to the project, the government said...

...OPG is more than half-way through a CAD12.8 billion project to refurbish the four units at its Darlington plant, which is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026. The "thousands" of lessons learned from that, and from Bruce Power's ongoing major project to refurbish six Candu units at its plant, are a "major advantage" to help ensure the project's success, OPG President and CEO Ken Hartwick said.

"Our experience refurbishing Darlington, a highly complex project that remains on time and on budget, will be invaluable as we begin the work necessary so Pickering can continue to help meet the growing electricity demands of this thriving province for another three-plus decades," he said...

CANDU reactors, heavy water reactors are my favorite kind of thermal reactors because their high neutron efficiency allows for thermal breeding, using the thorium-232/Uranium-233 cycle, ideally - in my view - with a plutonium initiator. This will allow for the essential scale up of nuclear power by creating fissionable material without the use of enrichment or mining, particularly with modern developments in the materials science of cladding, so called "accident resistant fuels."

The Pickering B reactors all were connected to the grid in the early to mid 1980s; the refurbishment should give them an overall lifetime of at least 70 years, perhaps longer.

This is good news for anyone concerned with climate change. Nuclear energy was a huge player in Ontario's successful campaign to phase out coal, and stands in direct opposition to Germany's decision to phase in coal while jawboning and issuing noncommittal excuses and soothsaying about a renewable energy nirvana that did not come, is not here, and won't come.