Bruce Power
 | |
| Company type | Limited liability partnership |
|---|---|
| Industry | Electricity generation |
| Founded | Tiverton, Ontario (2001) |
| Headquarters | Tiverton, Ontario, Canada |
Key people | Duncan Hawthorne - President & CEO |
| Products | Electricity |
| Revenue |  N/A CAN |
| Website | http://www.brucepower.com/ |
Bruce Power Limited Partnership is a Canadian business partnership composed of several corporations. It exists as a partnership between Cameco Corporation (31.6%), TransCanada Corporation (31.6%), BPC Generation Infrastructure Trust (31.6%), the Power Workers Union (4%) and The Society of Energy Professionals (1.2%).[1] It is the licensed operator of the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station, located on the shores of Lake Huron, roughly 250 kilometres northwest of Toronto, between the towns of Kincardine and Saugeen Shores.
When all eight units are in service, the facility is capable of supplying up to 6,300 MWe of electricity. This would make it the largest operating nuclear complex in the world. Unit 2 and unit 1 achieved commercial operating status in October of 2012 ending a multi-billion dollar refurbishment project and returning the site to full operating capacity for the first time in 17 years.
Governance
Current members of the board of directors of Bruce Power are: Dennis Fry, Duncan Hawthorne, Michael Rolland, Bernard Michel, Alexander Pourbaix, Sean McMaster, Sean Quinn, and Preston Swafford.
Current projects
Bruce Power has invested more than $7Bn to restart and optimise the performance of its nuclear fleet over the last decade and has successfully carried out massive refurbishment and plant life extension projects on all of its operatonal units.On 23 July 2009, Bruce Power announced that it will terminate its plans to construct Bruce C and Nanticoke nuclear power stations.[2]
Bruce A Restart
Following the initial Bruce A Restart project (initiated during the British Energy incumbency) to return to service of Units 3 and 4 (completed in 2003), work is now underway to restart Units 1 and 2 of Bruce A. To facilitate this, on 17 October 2005, Bruce Power announced a revision to its structure.[3]
- TransCanada Corporation, BPC Generation Infrastructure Trust, the PWU and the Society formed a new partnership, Bruce Power A Limited Partnership (BALP), that will obtain a sublease of the Bruce A facility. Cameco Corporation is not an investor in BALP. TransCanada and BPC will each own a 47.4% interest in BALP and the remaining interest will be owned by the PWU and Society
The Bruce A Restart project was recently named the largest infrastructure project currently underway in Canada, in addition it is considered one of the most complex engineering challenges Ontario has ever seen.
Safety has been a key component of the Restart initiative for both Bruce Power and its contractors. The project marked an astounding 24 million hours worked without a single lost-time injury. For a project this significant, this is a remarkable landmark for the entire industry.
On July 20, 2012 Bruce Power announced that they had received the go-ahead from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission to start up its Unit 1 reactor. [4]
Bruce Power Alberta
In March 2008, Bruce Power applied for a license to build a nuclear power plant at Cardinal Lake.[5] Chief Executive Officer Duncan Hawthorne travelled to Peace River, Manning and Grimshaw, Alberta to personally inform the communities that Bruce Power had initiated a process to consider building western Canada's first nuclear power plant.
Through an application filed with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission, Bruce Power is seeking approval to prepare a site that could generate 4,000 MW of electricity from two to four reactors that would not produce greenhouse gases or air pollutants. As concerns over climate change continue to grow, the proposal could have seen the first unit ready as early as 2017, pending the successful completion of a full Environmental Assessment (EA) and consultations with the local communities.
As part of the decision-making process, which could take up to three years to complete, Open Houses, workshops and community meetings would be held and regular newsletters issued to update residents and seek their input across Alberta.
Late in 2011, Bruce announced that they had decided against advancing the proposal.[6]
History
Bruce Power was founded as a Limited Liability Partnership in 2001 between British Energy (82.4%), Cameco Corporation (15%), Power Workers’ Union and The Society of Energy Professionals. Following the financial difficulties of British Energy in the Fall of 2002, the LLP became a wholly Canadian-owned Limited Partnership on 14 February 2003
In May 2001, Bruce Power became the licensed operator of the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station in Tiverton, Ontario, acquiring the sites from the defunct Ontario Hydro. Bruce A and Bruce B are equipped with eight CANDU nuclear reactors (4 at each station). The initial four reactors were commissioned at Bruce A between 1977 and 1979, while Bruce B's were added between 1984 and 1987. The Bruce Power site at Tiverton is the world's largest nuclear generating facility.
Since its creation, Bruce Power has successfully restarted two reactor units and launched an industry first in restarting two more.
On 7 October 2003, Unit 4 returned to the Ontario grid for the first time since 1998, when it was laid up by the site's previous operators. It was then followed by Unit 3 on 8 January 2004.
On 17 October 2005, Bruce Power reached an agreement with the Ontario Power Authority and launched a $4.25 billion investment program that will begin with the restart of Bruce A, Units 1 and 2. Unit 1 was returned to the grid on 20 September 2012, with Unit 2 following shortly on 18 October 2012. [7] [8]
Restarting those units boosts Bruce Power's output to 6,300 MW, making Bruce Power the source for about 25 per cent of Ontario's electricity on a typical day.
References
- ^ From Bruce Power Web Site - Canadian-based consortium officially joins Bruce Power Limited Partnership
- ^ "Plans for two new Ontario plants scrapped". World Nuclear News. 2009-07-23. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
- ^ "From Bruce Power Web Site - Agreement reached to secure Bruce Power's future. Restart of Units 1 and 2 first phase of $4.25 billion investment".
- ^ "Regulator gives Bruce Power go-ahead to start-up Unit 1".
- ^ "Bruce Power buys assets of Energy Alberta Corp".
- ^ "Bruce Power will not proceed with nuclear option in Alberta" (Press release). Bruce Power. 12 December 2011.
- ^ "Bruce Power's Unit 1 sends electricity to Ontario grid for first time in 15 years". Bruce Power press release. Bruce Power.
- ^ "Bruce Power's Unit 2 sends electricity to Ontario grid for first time in 17 years". Bruce Power press release. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
External links
- Bruce Power — corporate website
- Bruce Power YouTube channel