Ontario Construction News staff writer
The refurbishment of Unit 1 at the Darlington Nuclear Generating Station has been completed five months ahead of schedule, providing 875 megawatts (MW) of power for the next 30-plus years.
“Congratulations on this well-deserved milestone and we’re so honoured to have been involved in delivering CANDU life extensions safely and efficiently,” said Gary Rose, EVP, Life Extensions and Reactor Services, Nuclear, Canada, AtkinsRéalis. “As the original equipment manufacturer of CANDU technology; our in-depth knowledge of OPG’s processes and operating model, stemming from decades of collaboration, and working hand-in-hand with our joint venture partner Aecon, means we have extensive familiarity with the plant and its operator.
“As a result, we were able to deliver a world-first innovation during Darlington’s refurbishment: removing calandria tubes and pressure tubes from the CANDU reactors in one extraction instead of two and speeding up the project’s timeline,”
The project is one of Canada’s largest energy projects and included the successful removal and replacement of major components of the reactor and its associated equipment including pressure tubes, calandria tubes and feeder pipes, as well as inspection and upgrades of the Turbine Generator equipment.
“Unit 1 is the third unit we will have refurbished months ahead of schedule, safely and with quality,” said Ken Hartwick, OPG President and CEO. “Through the planning, dedication, skill and innovation of OPG and its project partner team, including hundreds of skilled tradespeople, we are now in year nine of this 10-year refurbishment project execution phase, clearly demonstrating we can complete large, complex nuclear projects on schedule and on budget.
“As we continue refurbishment of Unit 4, we are committed to keeping up our momentum. With the finish line in sight, we are confident we will be able to deliver this project safely and with quality to support Ontario’s electrifying future.”
According to Ontario’s Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO), the province’s demand for electricity is forecast to increase by 75 per cent by 2050.
Unit 1 is the third of four units that have been successfully refurbished to date by Ontario Power Generation (OPG), with the overall project tracking on-time and on-budget. Unit 4 is tracking to be completed by 2026.
“Driven by unwavering execution excellence, the completion of the Darlington Unit 1 refurbishment ahead of schedule is an exceptional achievement and I would like to congratulate the entire project team for reaching this remarkable milestone with world-class safety, quality and schedule performance,” said Thomas Clochard, EVP, Nuclear and Civil, Aecon Group Inc. “Aecon is proud of its role as the Canadian constructor on this historic project that will help meet the growing energy demands of future generations in Ontario.
“We look forward to continuing to successfully implement unit-over-unit lessons learned to deliver this critical refurbishment program – leveraging the proven one team approach between Aecon, AtkinsRéalis and OPG.”