Ontario's power grid is getting a boost as Bruce Power connected Unit 6 following a Major Component Replacement (MCR) outage.
The Unit six project wrapped up ahead of schedule despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. It's also the first unit to return to service as part of Bruce Power's life Extension program.
Bruce Power said the project which began in January 2020 also came in under budget thanks to efforts from employees, industry partners and skilled tradespeople.
“We’re proud of our people and partners, all of our suppliers and unions – the Power Workers’ Union, Society of United Professionals, Building Trades, Canadian Union of Skilled Workers (CUSW), and United Steelworkers Union (USW) members,” said Mike Rencheck, Bruce Power’s President and CEO. “As one of the largest nuclear operators in the world, refurbishing our units is key to providing clean, reliable energy to the people of Ontario well into the future. We have shown strong performance and we’ve committed to providing the lowest-cost nuclear energy in Ontario and to bettering our performance in each successive MCR outage.”
The program aims to refurbish Units 3-8 over the next decade to extend the life of the units’ operation period to 2064. Bruce Power says its Life-Extension Program is Ontario’s largest clean-energy initiative and one of Canada’s largest private sector infrastructure projects. It has created tens of thousands of jobs.
Bruce Power's operations and Life-Extension Program generates between $9 billion and $12 billion in direct and indirect economic activity in Canada.
Unit 3 was taken out of service earlier this year for a major component replacement, and the project is now reaping the benefits of lessons gained in Unit 6 to save time and money.
“Congratulations to the Bruce Power team and partners on the successful return to service of Unit 6,” said Hon. Todd Smith, Ontario’s Minister of Energy. “Bringing this refurbished unit back online ahead of schedule is a great example of how we’re Powering Ontario’s Growth. We’re already a world leader in clean energy generation and today’s good news only proves that we have the experts and the Made-in-Ontario supply chain to meet increased electrification needs and power our economic growth.”
Each MCR Project extends the reactor’s life for 40 years by replacing and upgrading key equipment. Hundreds of companies and thousands of tradespeople replaced 480 fuel channels, 960 feeders and eight massive steam generators, in addition to thousands of other modifications and tasks, including loading 5,760 new fuel bundles into the core.
