US-based Westinghouse Electric Company – owned by Canada’s Brookfield (51%) and Cameco (49%) – has signed a series of memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with three key Canadian suppliers to support nuclear new build projects in Canada and worldwide. Westinghouse said this strengthens its “deep commitment to Canada’s economy and further develops the nation’s nuclear supply chain to support Westinghouse’s global fleet of advanced reactors”.

The MOUs – with Curtiss-Wright Nuclear Canada, ES Fox Ltd and Velan Inc – establish the potential for manufacturing key reactor components, including valves, flow control equipment and large steel structures as well as various fabrication, construction and testing services.

“As a fully-owned Canadian company, Westinghouse is invested in the success of the Canadian nuclear industry and delivering the economic benefits of building AP1000 reactors home to Canada,” said Dan Lipman, President of Westinghouse Energy Systems. He added that, for each AP1000 unit built outside of Canada, Westinghouse could generate almost CAD1bn ($741,000m) in GDP through local suppliers.”

Westinghouse has worked closely with Canadian suppliers on components for its AP1000 reactor. The company is also collaborating with the Canadian supply chain for its AP300 small modular reactor, a 300 MWe single-loop pressurised water reactor based on AP1000 technology, and the eVinci microreactor, which can provide up to 5 MWe over eight years for various applications.

Westinghouse said a four-unit AP1000 facility in Canada could power at least 3m homes while supporting CAD28.7bn in gross domestic product (GDP) during construction and CAD8.1bn in GDP annually in ongoing operations. The four-unit project would also create 12,000 high-quality full-time Canadian jobs and provide Canadian firms opportunities to support other AP1000 units in the pipeline globally.

Currently, the AP1000 is not operating anywhere in Europe. In the USA two AP1000 reactors are operating at the Vogle NPP in Georgia following significant delays and budget overruns. Four Westinghouse AP1000 units are in operation at China, two at each of the Sanmen and Haiyang NPPs. Two CAP1000 units, the Chinese version of the AP1000, are being built as the second phase of each station. A further eight CAP1000 reactors are under construction in China with four more under contract. The AP1000 technology has been selected for the nuclear energy programmes in Poland, Ukraine and Bulgaria.

Researched and written by Judith Perera