The Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) renewed the operating licences for Ontario Power Generation’s (OPG’s) Pickering A and B stations, for two and five years respectively.
The four Pickering A units are shut down for upgrades, with unit 4 currently expected to return in late August. Restoration of that unit is over a year behind schedule. The four Pickering B reactors continue operating.
The Pickering A licence is valid until June 2005, and Pickering B’s until June 2008. These were the licensing periods that OPG had sought.
The CNSC said that it would be watching station performance in some areas. For example, it will be monitoring quality assurance issues, and it will “maintain a vigilant watch for any evidence of an eroding safety culture that could negatively affect safety performance.”
