Messages from the Project Team
Previous Messages:
Message from the Refurbishment Project Director - Winter 2007
Congratulations to the staff at Nuclearco, Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL)
and their contractors, who recently completed civil construction activities at the
Solid Radioactive Waste Management Facility extension at the Point Lepreau Generating
Station. The Solid Radioactive Waste Management Facility will be used to store waste
generated during refurbishment and the extended operation of the station.
This successful construction project follows months of detailed preparations and
planning. It began with the development of the Construction Environmental Protection
Program in 2005. In mid-March 2006, Nuclearco and AECL staff began mobilizing equipment,
facilities and staff so that following approval from the Canadian Nuclear Safety
Commission on March 21, 2006, construction activities could begin.
All staff received the appropriate training and site orientation, in accordance
with Station expectations and the Construction Environmental Protection Program.
Training took place both at AECL’s Saint John office and on-site at Point Lepreau
Generating Station.
In April 2006, preparation activities such as tree cutting, brush clearing and rock
breaking began. In doing this, staff had to ensure that they were in compliance
with environmental regulations. The very first concrete pour for the retube waste
canisters took place on May 11, 2006.
The construction included activities in three phases of the Solid Radioactive Waste
Management Facility site:
Phase I
- completed construction of two new vault structures with provision to build two more
on an as-needed basis for storage of low and intermediate radioactive waste
- commissioning of this area is on-going
Phase II
- completed ground clearing and preparation for future dry used fuel storage
- placed, levelled and compacted approved granular fill in the area
Phase III
- completed construction of five retube waste canister structures (high radioactive
waste) and two vault structures (low and intermediate radioactive waste)
- completed installation of monitoring equipment, administrative facilities, fencing
and lighting for the area
Paving and installation of the crane and control systems will take place in spring
2007, and commissioning will take place in summer 2007. Training and preparations
for the turnover to operations will take place prior to the refurbishment outage
in spring 2008. Nuclearco staff now has 13 months remaining until the refurbishment
outage, which will begin in April 2008. The timely completion of these activities
is another demonstration of Nuclearco’s commitment to completing the refurbishment
project safely, on time and on budget.
For further information or updates, please contact Katherine French, Communications
Officer, at (506) 638-5309.
Sincerely,
Rod Eagles
Refurbishment Project Director
NB Power Nuclear Corporation
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Message from the Refurbishment Project Director - Fall 2006
Refurbishment project activities are on-going and remain on time and on schedule
due to the combined efforts of the NB Power Nuclear and Atomic Energy of Canada
Limited (AECL) team.
The construction of the Solid Radioactive Waste Management Facility extension is
progressing well in all three phases. The Phase I extension, which will be used
to store low and intermediate waste, is now complete and commissioning will begin
shortly. The paving and fencing is complete in this area. The Phase II extension
has been excavated for future expansion of the dry fuel canisters and the Phase
III development, which consists of the construction of the retube waste canisters,
is nearing completion. Concrete pouring for the vault walls is complete, top slabs
for the five retube waste canisters have been poured and handrails and latters are
now being installed. Preparations for paving and fencing of the Phase III site have
also begun. The civil portion of construction is expected to be completed by December
31st, 2006, with some of the mechanical work and commissioning activities continuing
into 2007.
The retube portion of the project is progressing well, with great emphasis being
placed on the speciality tooling development. For both the retube and refurbishment
activities the majority of major materials have been ordered, including pressure
tubes, calandria tubes, end fittings, feeder material, other fuel channel components,
as well as the shutdown system computers. Orders of major material for the turbine
and generator equipment have also been completed.
Other refurbishment activities include the preparation of lay-up procedures, the
development of return to service procedures and the development of the commissioning
program.
Construction of the new office building is well underway. The sub-structure, structural
steel, floor decking and pouring of the ground, second and third floor slabs is
complete. The roof installation is near completion and the bricklaying is underway.
The new office building is expected to be occupied by the summer of 2007.
If you have any questions on the project or would like additional information, please
contact Katherine French, Communications Officer, at (506) 638-5309.
Sincerely,
Rod Eagles
Refurbishment Project Director
NB Power Nuclear Corporation
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Message from the AECL Project Director - Summer 2006
It is hard to believe that it has already been one year since the New Brunswick
government announced it was proceeding with the refurbishment of the Point Lepreau
Generating Station, but I am delighted to report that the project is progressing
very well, with activities proceeding on time and on budget.
Thanks to the outstanding efforts of our staff and our close collaboration with
our client, New Brunswick Power, the project is well on its way. We are focused
on hiring the right people, securing top-notch suppliers, and meeting and delivering
on each of our project milestones with excellence.
Among the highlights of the past year is the opening of our Bayside Drive office
in Saint John. Operational since mid-January, the AECL office is home to 37 full-time
employees – 25 of whom were recruited locally. In addition to seasoned professionals,
the expanded team includes many recent graduates from New Brunswick universities
and community colleges.
AECL is working closely with Business New Brunswick to ensure that suppliers in
the province are notified when contracts come up for bid. Major contracts awarded
in New Brunswick during the past year include Arvin Machine Works Inc. of Miramichi,
for construction of fuel channels mock-up; Opron Maritimes Construction of Saint
John, for the civil portion of the Solid Radioactive Waste Management Facility (SRWMF);
Sunny Corner Enterprises of Miramichi City, for mechanical components for the SRWMF
and xwave of Saint John, for IT installation and service requirements.
More recently, we marked a major milestone in the project when we began construction
on the waste management facility, which will store removed highly radioactive material
such as the pressure tubes from the reactor core, associated feeder pipes and a
number of plant components. And, just last month, we took possession of approximately
55,000 square feet of fabrication and warehouse space at our Bayside facility, which
will include a clean room for the assembly of components to be used during the refurbishment.
As the Point Lepreau project heads into its second year, I would like to once again
recognize and praise all of the staff who have been involved in making this project
run smoothly, from the people directly involved in the refurbishment to those providing
support within the rest of the AECL organization. Congratulations to all. I look
forward to keeping you updated on our future progress.
Sincerely,
David Scott
AECL Project Director
Point Lepreau Refurbishment
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Message from the Refurbishment Project Director - Summer 2006
It has been one year since the announcement was made on July 29th, 2005 that the
Point Lepreau Generating Station refurbishment project would proceed. Since that
date, we have achieved some significant milestones, including:
- The commencement of construction of the Solid Radioactive Waste Management Facility
(SRWMF) extension which will support refurbishment and the extended operation of
the station. AECL started construction activities on April 3rd, 2006 and the major
construction work is expected to be completed by December 31st, 2006, with some
of the mechanical and commissioning work continuing into 2007.
- The ordering of many key materials needed for the refurbishment project including
pressure tubes, calandria tubes, end fittings and feeder material.
- The awarding of contracts to many New Brunswick companies such as OPRON Maritimes
Construction of Saint John, Arvin Machine Works Inc. of Miramichi, Sunny Corners
Enterprises of Miramichi City and x-wave of Saint John.
- The significant addition of project staff at both NB Power and AECL.
- The commencement of construction of the new administrative building adjacent to
the Point Lepreau Generating Station. The excavation phase of the project is now
complete. Phase II began on Monday, July 4th which includes the construction of
the foundation, footings and the building structure. This phase is expected to be
complete by November. The new building is expected to be occupied by July 2007.
- The completion in June 2006 of our planned annual maintenance outage, which included
many system walk downs in preparation for the 2008 outage.
- The completion of design work for much of the refurbishment work to meet schedule
requirements.
- The establishment of the AECL office in mid January 2006 (37 staff as of July 31st,
2006) at the former Saint John Shipbuilding site.
- The announcement on June 30th, 2006 by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission that
Point Lepreau Generating Station's Nuclear Power Reactor Operating Licence has been
renewed for a five year period, valid until June 30th, 2011.
The refurbishment outage is scheduled to start in April 2008 and will be completed
over an 18-month period. We will continue to provide you with updates as we move
closer to this date. In the meantime, if you have any questions regarding the project
or would like additional information, please contact Kahterine French, Communications
Officer, at 506-638-5309.
Sincerely,
Rod Eagles
Refurbishment Project Director
NB Power Nuclear Corporation
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Message from the Refurbishment Project Director - Spring 2006
I am pleased to report that the Point Lepreau refurbishment project is well on its
way, with activities proceeding on time and on budget due to the efforts of our
staff. We are currently entering our 21st month of a 32-month pre-outage preparation
schedule. The refurbishment outage is scheduled to start in April 2008 and will
be completed over an 18-month period.
Construction is underway of the Solid Radioactive Waste Management Facility (SRWMF)
which will support refurbishment and the extended operation of the station. There
are construction activities in three areas of the waste site:
- Phase I - low and intermediate waste extension
- Phase II - dry fuel canister extension
- Phase III – retube waste structures
Other key accomplishments on the refurbishment project include:
- The ordering of key preparation materials.
- The awarding of several contracts to New Brunswick companies by AECL for the project,
including Arvin Machine Works Inc. of Miramichi (for construction of fuel channels
mock-up), Opron Maritimes Construction of Saint John (for civil portion of SRWMF),
Sunny Corner Enterprises of Miramichi City (for mechanical components of SRWMF)
and xwave of Saint John (for IT installation and service requirements).
Many thanks are extended to all of the staff involved in making this project run
smoothly, including the project team and station staff at NB Power, the hundreds
of AECL staff in Mississauga and Chalk River, as well as over 30 AECL staff based
at their Saint John office at the former shipyard location, 25 of which are from
New Brunswick.
We will continue to work as a team to accomplish our project objectives which are
consistent with the station goals of safe and reliable operation, executing the
refurbishment on schedule and on budget and achieving world-class performance.
If you have any questions regarding the project or would like additional information,
please contact Katherine French, Communications Officer, at (506) 638-5309.
Sincerely,
Rod Eagles
Refurbishment Project Director
NB Power Nuclear Corporation
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Project Update from AECL’s Point Lepreau Refurbishment Office - Winter 2005
We, at AECL, are pleased that the New Brunswick Government and NB Power have chosen
us as the Primary Contractor for the refurbishment of the Point Lepreau Generating
Station.
Our office, at 430 Bayside Drive, Saint John, NB, has been operational since mid-January
and the second floor has been completely renovated. We now have 26 full-time staff,
21 of which have been recruited locally.
In addition to leasing the office building we have leased two large warehouses.
These will be used to store construction-related equipment and to accommodate the
“lay-down” of large power plant equipment. The warehouses are now being cleaned
and, beginning in July 2006, will be upgraded to include a large “clean room”.
In keeping with our commitment to utilize New Brunswick firms wherever possible
we have engaged local suppliers for all of the office renovations and equipment.
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Message from the Station Manager - Fall 2005
As most of you know, on July 29, 2005, the Government of New Brunswick announced
that NB Power will proceed with the refurbishment of the Point Lepreau Generating
Station with the Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) as the general contractor.
This recommendation comes after many months of discussions and negotiations with
stakeholders and potential partners. This is viewed as being a good decision for
New Brunswick – it will limit the impact on rates and will provide security and
diversity of fuel supply. This option is one which minimizes risk to the environment.
From a social perspective, it allows us to maintain a highly-trained, skilled work
force within southern New Brunswick. As we move forward with this project, we will
continue to ensure that safety is always our first priority. We are committed to
delivering this project on time and on budget and we are confident that we can make
this project a success for all New Brunswick.
The following timeline is a summary of the planning and execution activities that
are part of the refurbishment outage:
- Detailed engineering will commence immediately and will continue until the refurbishment
outage begins
- Procurement will begin later this year with completion expected in March 2008
-
Construction of temporary facilities and waste storage will begin in 2006
- The planned refurbishment maintenance outage will start in April 2008 and will be
completed by September 2009
A positive refurbishment decision would not have been possible without the on-going
support of our communities and the hard work and dedication that station staff provides.
We would like to thank all of you for the support that you have provided us during
this journey. We greatly appreciate the dialogue and meetings that we have had with
our Community Relations Committee during the past 3 years. I know I can count on
the continued support of our community.
Sincerely,
J. J. McCarthy
Station Manager
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