Earlier this month, the government of Ontario (Canada’s largest province by population) suspended the process for the building of two new nuclear reactors, citing skyrocketing costs and responsibility to taxpayers as the main deterrent.
“Emission-free nuclear power remains a crucial aspect of Ontario’s supply mix,” Smitherman said Monday. “Unfortunately, the competitive bidding process has not provided Ontario with a suitable option at this time.”
The proposed 10 year, multi-billion dollar project may eventually be restarted, but government spokespeople confirmed that all bidders have been asked to extend their proposals indefinitely.
Industry members were disappointed by the indefinite pause in the building of these two new reactors:
“We are extremely concerned by the announcement. There is a renaissance taking place in nuclear power around the world, with 200 plants in planning stages, and we were hoping that Canada would take a leadership role,” said Neil Alexander, president of the Organization of Candu Industries, an industry group representing about 30,000 nuclear workers.
It seems though that the nuclear renaissance taking place has skipped over Canada (or at the very least, Ontario), as nuclear operator Bruce Power has independently suspended its own nuclear power plant expansion plans, citing falling demand and the economy.
The suspension of the creation of new nuclear power plants in Ontario is being hailed as a victory for green power by environmental groups like Greenpeace. This victory could prove to be all but fleeting, as rising demand for power in the future will again force power suppliers and the government to examine their options, including nuclear power.
Image credit: mandj98 via Flickr, under a Creative Commons license.
More than likely, with Atomic Energy of Canada for sale, the Ontario government posturing with the feds on the price and outcome. As aggressive as the push is more wind & solar, the grid will likely need nuclear power as they phase out coal.