OPG holding open houses in Courtice, Ajax
Oct 30, 2008 - 02:09 PM
By Keith Gilligan
DURHAM -- Ontario Power Generation is continuing its work toward building a pair of reactors next to the Darlington nuclear station.
And, a series of information sessions have been held to keep the public up-to-date on the plan. Two more sessions are scheduled next week, with one in Courtice and the other in Ajax.
Between 20 to 30 people are attending each session, said Lauri Swami, the director, licencing nuclear generation development for OPG. "A lot of people want to hear the presentation."
The level of public support depends on where the open house is held, she said. "As you get away from the plant, there's less knowledge of the plant. Clearly, people want to know we are operating safely," Ms. Swami said during a meeting of the Pickering Community Advisory Council on Tuesday.
The information session in Courtice is on Tuesday, Nov. 4, in Hall A of the Courtice Community Centre, 2950 Courtice Rd. N., from 5 to 9 p.m.
In Ajax, there's a session on Thursday, Nov. 6 in the HMS Ajax Room of the Ajax Community Centre, 75 Centennial Rd., during the same times.
At both sessions, there will be a presentation starting at 7 p.m.
The provincial government wants up to 4,800 megawatts of power produced at the Darlington site. "The bid process is two units now and they're looking at potentially additional units," said Ms. Swami.
Three vendors are bidding to build the reactors, she said, adding the winning bid is to be announced in March of 2009.
The winning bidder will be responsible for building the reactors, while OPG has been selected to operate them.
Final bid submissions have to be filed with the provincial government by the end of the year, Ms. Swami said.
The three companies are Atomic Energy of Canada (AECL), Areva NP and Westinghouse Electric Company.
The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission is preparing guidelines for an environmental impact statement and a site preparation licence, and public comments on the guidelines can be made by Nov. 19. After the comments are received, they'll be reviewed and the final guidelines released.
The EIS is part of the environmental assessment OPG has to conduct.
"In the middle of next year, we'll submit the EIS and site preparation licence application," Ms. Swami said. "There's a lot of opportunity for the public to still comment on the EA process."
A panel review of the EIS will then be done and it should be completed by 2011.
"Mid-2011 is when we get the licence. That's when the work begins, earth being moved, fences going up," Ms. Swami said. "Once we get the licence to construct, we can start to build the buildings for the reactors."
It will take six years to build the reactors and they'll be operational by 2018, according to the provincial timeline.
It will take about a year to go through the commissioning process, she said.
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