Bruce nuclear plans $13B refurbishment of six reactors in Kincardine, Ont.
by The Canadian Press
Ontario delays Bruce Power refurbishment until 2020 to squeeze more life from existing reactors
The ‘A’ turbine hall at Bruce nuclear in Tiverton, Ont. Bruce Power had initially planned to begin its 15-year reactor refurbishment program in 2016. PHOTO Bruce Power
TORONTO—Bruce Power will spend $13 billion to refurbish six nuclear reactors at its generating station near Kincardine, Ont.
The Liberal government announced it will delay the start of the 15-year refurbishment project until 2020 instead of the original date of 2016 to squeeze more life out of the existing reactors.
The government says the agreement with Bruce will save $1.7 billion dollars from the original plans, and generate about $6.3 billion a year in economic benefits across Ontario.
The electricity generated by the nuclear reactors at Bruce will increase to 6.57 cents a kilowatt hour on Jan. 1, 2016 and rise as each reactor is refurbished to 7.7 cents by the end of the contract.
Bruce Power Station in Tiverton, Ont. PHOTO: Bruce Power
The government says that will save the average household using 800 kilowatt hours a month of electricity about $66 a year.
Bruce Power takes on the full risk of cost overruns in the update to the 10-year-old agreement between the TransCananda-owned company that operates the nuclear reactors and the provincial government that owns them.
If the refurbishments come in under budget, Bruce would get a share of the savings.
All units at Ontario Power Generation’s Pickering nuclear station will be retired by 2020, and the province also plans to refurbish some of the reactors at the Darlington station starting near the end of 2016.
