Ontario will soon be making some big decisions about nuclear power. Already the largest beneficiary in Canada of this clean, reliable, stable power source, Ontario gets between 50-60 per cent of its power from nuclear. Recently, the provincial government announced its intention to build 4,800 MW of new nuclear power production at Bruce Power’s site in Kincardine, Ont., the largest operating nuclear site in the world. It has also announced that it will extend the life of four CANDU® reactors at the Pickering Nuclear Generating Station for another 30 years of safe operation and that it intends to build four small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs), including the first in the G7.

Ontario’s grid is already 90 per cent clean, primarily because of Canadian CANDU technology that saw decommissioned reactors refurbished and brought back online in 2014. The province was then able to retire the use of coal and reduce its polluted air the following year and has had zero smog days ever since.

Ontario will look to nuclear once again as it faces at least a doubling of power demand by 2050, with its own Independent Electricity System Operator estimating a need to double its currently installed nuclear capacity alongside other clean technologies such as hydro.

A made-in-Canada solution

The good news is that we have a world-class, homegrown Canadian solution in CANDU nuclear technology that allows the province to not only better manage the inherent challenges that come with large, complex infrastructure projects, but also accrue the advantages that come with being masters of our own destiny.

The province’s reputation as a nuclear powerhouse has been built over decades. That deep expertise lies at the heart of the latest CANDU models, which offer enhanced passive features and modern efficiency of maintenance and operations. In the face of a daunting challenge to combat climate change, we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to flex our muscles and harness the designs created by some of Canada’s best scientists and engineers. As the vast majority of CANDU components, fuel (which uses unenriched uranium from Saskatchewan) and services are sourced domestically and more than 85 per cent of a CANDU reactor’s equipment and parts can be supplied by Canadian manufacturers, this offers a virtuous circle of benefits to stakeholders across the country and provides greater stability, independence and energy security in an increasingly destabilized geopolitical world.

Up to this point, this supply chain has been shaped around CANDU technology: the only domestic Canadian design and the only fully licenced and deployed power-producing nuclear technology in Canada. Constantly modernized and improved over the years, the 19 reactors in Canada operate at an advanced, Gen III+ standard. AtkinsRéalis is proud to be the original equipment manufacturer of CANDU technology, employing over 1,500 staff in our Canadian Nuclear business. These jobs are high-paying, predominately unionized and span a variety of high-skilled roles including engineering, manufacturing, project management, skilled trades, construction and more.

In addition to having a well-established innovation and science ecosystem, AtkinsRéalis partners with an Ontario-centric, but also Canada-wide nuclear supply chain of more than 250 companies that employ 76,000 people and provide CANDU fuel, components, services and tooling.

As Ontario looks to the future, it is clear that large nuclear reactors, in addition to small modular reactors, will be needed to meet the 18,000 MW of new nuclear power. Large nuclear reactors will optimize the amount of energy provided from scarce grid-connected regions in Ontario to meet its energy transition goals. And if these reactors are designed, built, supplied and serviced from within Canada, it is a win-win for all Canadians.

There are also CANDU reactors operating in Argentina, China, Romania and South Korea; these reactors were built and are maintained by Canadians. Each time a CANDU reactor is deployed either in Canada or internationally, all Canadians benefit as it creates thousands of well-paying jobs across the supply chain every year.

CANDU MONARK: Continuing a tradition of excellence

The AtkinsRéalis nuclear business has been at the forefront of innovation for over 70 years; with the unveiling of the CANDU MONARK™ in late 2023, our tradition of industry excellence continues. The CANDU MONARK reactor is the latest, most advanced and most economical next-generation technology in the CANDU suite of nuclear reactors. As a large-scale reactor, the CANDU MONARK is an optimal solution for utilities and governments around the world looking for proven, low cost, stable baseload power.

The CANDU MONARK’s competitive advantage is that it uses natural uranium as fuel with no need for enrichment overseas, co-produces cancer-fighting medical isotopes and can be refuelled online. It also boasts the highest safety and operating efficiency standards in the world. In an era where cost and delay overruns have become all too common, the last seven CANDU reactors have been built on time and on budget. The 10-unit life-extension projects being executed by AtkinsRéalis joint ventures at Darlington and Bruce Power (which involve rebuilding a reactor inside-out) are similarly performing on time and on budget.

The CANDU MONARK produces the most energy power of any CANDU reactor at 1,000 MW, making it well-suited to the needs of Ontario’s utilities as well as their transmission and distribution capacities on existing and prospective sites. It also has a longer operating life of 70 years. CANDU MONARK has been designed with a module-based construction strategy that reduces risk and time to construct. As part of its future-thinking design, it can integrate a hydrogen production plant and storage facility into the nuclear station it resides in, as well as use surplus heat from the plant to make hydrogen generation more efficient.

Like all CANDU reactors in operation, which have been upgraded to deploy the latest innovations in safety technology, CANDU MONARK reactors have comprehensive “defense in depth” systems to de-risk even the most unlikely scenarios. They contain two independent, equally effective systems that can shut down the reactor. Both systems work without power, and without the need for operator intervention.

CANDU technology: The best choice

We are confident that Canada’s CANDU MONARK is the best choice for Ontario’s large new reactor build plans. And we are in good company, as following our announcement of the new reactor design, the Society of United Professionals, one of Ontario’s largest engineering unions, endorsed the CANDU MONARK.

The future is bright for a homegrown nuclear technology solution to one of the most pressing challenges of our time; we cannot wait to get started.

Advertising feature produced by AtkinsRéalis. The Globe’s editorial department was not involved.