Bruce Power has signed one of the biggest contracts of its upcoming refurbishment project.
The company awarded a $475-million deal with Shoreline Power Group to provide re-tube work for the Unit 6 major component replacement, specifically feeder tubes and fuel channels, with the possibility of extending the agreement to the remaining five units in line for refurbishment.
President and CEO Mike Rencheck says it's a milestone moment for the MCR, as they move from engineering into getting boots on the ground and will now get ready to begin the Unit 6 refurbishment in January 2020.
"It really marks the start of our construction project for the Unit 6 major component replacement, as you know, we'll open the breaker in January of 2020 and start commencing construction," says Rencheck. "But as of today, we'll start mobilizing and starting setting up the planning processes and the work packages."
Rencheck says the agreement will create and sustain more than 800 jobs over 15 years, likely peaking at around 1,500 jobs, both directly and indirectly.
Former premier Mike Harris was on hand for the announcement and recalled his history with the Bruce site while at the provincial helm, which included shutting down Unit 3 and Unit 4 to overseeing the lease of the site to what would eventually be known as Bruce Power.
He says the plan prior to the creation of Bruce Power would have seen the remaining units shut down by 2015 and decommissioning would've begun this year, noting the success of the partnership with Bruce Power has created a completely different outcome.
"It's been such a wonderful success story, and when public-private partnerships are done right, as [Bruce Power] was done right, there are huge rewards for the economy and for Ontario," says Harris. "And not just the jobs, but the low-cost power that's being produced here."
Bruce Power President & CEO Mike Rencheck [middle] signs an agreement with Shoreline Power Group for Unit 6 re-tube.
Former premier Mike Harris delivers remarks during Bruce Power's Unit 6 re-tube contract announcement.