Unit 7 at Bruce Power returned to service after planned maintenance outage

Bruce Power’s Unit 7 returned to service Monday morning after workers safely completed thousands of tasks during a 94-day, planned maintenance outage.

The maintenance program sets the unit up to provide low-cost power to Ontario families and businesses for another long run. Unit 7 had set a record of 487 consecutive days of providing carbon-free electricity, prior to being removed from service for the planned outage in September, said Len Clewett, Bruce Power’s chief nuclear officer.

“Unit 7 was a very strong performer prior to this planned maintenance program,” said Clewett. “As part of our current Life-Extension Program, we are safely working through our long-term maintenance plan for all eight units and, thanks to the work of our skilled employees and contractors, we expect Unit 7 to continue being a workhorse for Ontario’s electricity grid until its next planned outage.”

With the province experiencing its first taste of winter in recent days, the return of Unit 7 comes at the right time as demand increases with cold weather, including exports to other jurisdictions including Quebec.

The first ‘High Specific Activity’ (HSA) Cobalt was loaded into Unit 7 during the outage, and will be harvested and sent to Nordion for processing in about two years. In October, Bruce Power signed an agreement to begin supplying Nordion with HSA Cobalt, which is used in the treatment of brain-related cancers.

For 60 years, Nordion’s supply of medical-grade Cobalt has come primarily from the National Research Universal reactor in Chalk River, Ontario. That reactor is slated to reach its end-of-life in 2018, creating the possibility of an international shortage of medical-grade Cobalt – a gap Bruce Power will now help fill.

“HSA Cobalt is at the forefront of innovative new medical technologies, so we’re excited to be part of the supply chain for this radiation therapy,” Clewett said. “As a long-time supplier of Cobalt-60, we’re helping to keep our hospitals safe for patients. Now, with HSA Cobalt, we will have a greater benefit to human health across the globe.”

During the maintenance outage, ‘Low Specific Activity’ Cobalt-60 was also removed from the reactor, before being processed by Nordion. It will sterilize 40 per cent of the world’s single-use medical devices, including gloves, masks and stents. While Cobalt-60 helps keep the world’s hospitals safe for its most vulnerable citizens, it also plays a role in controlling the Zika Virus, through a mosquito sterilization program which is under way in affected countries. Learn more about the life-saving role of Cobalt-60 at www.cleannuclearpowersafehospitals.com.

Overall, Bruce Power’s eight units provide 30 per cent of Ontario’s electricity at 30 per cent less than the average residential price of power. Learn more at www.brucepower.com or download the iPad and iPhone apps at www.brucepowerapp.com or the iTunes Store.