By Canadian Press

Feds fund small nuclear reactor ahead of national strategy to adopt more of them

Oct 15, 2020 | 12:58 PM

OTTAWA — An Ontario nuclear power company is getting $20 million from Ottawa to try to get its new reactor in line with Canada’s safety regulations.

Terrestrial Energy in Oakville, Ont., is one of about a dozen companies in Canada developing a small modular reactor, a nuclear-power generator that is much smaller and more versatile than the big, Canadian-made CANDU reactors in service in Ontario and New Brunswick.

Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains says the money will help the company complete a pre-licensing process with the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission.

This process occurs before the company applies for a licence so that it can work to meet the commission’s requirements in the development phase.

The company hopes its first nuclear reactor will be producing power before the end of the decade.

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Natural Resources Minister Seamus O’Regan says small modular reactors will be critical to Canada being able to meet its emissions targets and plans to issue a national strategy on how they will be used to replace fossil fuels as a source of electricity.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 15, 2020.

The Canadian Press