Pickering, Ontario, Oct. 29, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A team of 19 Canadian-based nuclear equipment and service providers visited Romania from October 6 to 11, 2019 for meetings and site visits to build partnerships supporting the refurbishment of Cernavoda Unit 1 and the potential completion of Cernavoda units 3&4. The trade mission was led by the Organization of Canadian Nuclear Industries (OCNI) with strong support by the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service in Bucharest and co-funding from the Global Affairs Canada CanExport Associations program.
The 30 trade mission delegates met with Romanian nuclear suppliers who are members of the nuclear supply chain organization ROMATOM. Delegates also visited the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant (CNPP) and the Pitesti Institute for Nuclear Research (ICN). Executives from the Romanian Ministry of Energy, Nuclearelectrica, the Romanian Agency for Radioactive Waste Management, the Romanian nuclear regulator (CNCAN), and ROMATOM briefed the Canadian delegates on recent developments in energy supply planning, CNPP operations, nuclear waste storage, nuclear regulation and quality management. Two days of B2B meetings among the Canadian delegates and Romanian nuclear suppliers were also a key part of the week-long trade mission. The capabilities across the Romanian nuclear industry were highlighted by the first and third place world ranking of Cernavoda Units 2 and 1 in terms of lifetime capacity factors among all operating NPP’s.
“Romanian nuclear suppliers, Nuclearelectrica, and other key agencies in Romania’s nuclear sector confirmed their intent to continue and enhance collaboration with the Canadian nuclear industry that begin more than 30 years ago with the construction of CANDU nuclear plants at the Cernavoda Site”, noted OCNI President and CEO Dr. Ron Oberth.
“The increasing electricity demand combined with plans to shut down all coal generating station by 2030 to meet Romania’s GHG emission reduction targets will require continued reliance on clean energy from CNPP as well as consideration of additional CANDU units at the Cernavoda Site”, said ROMATOM Executive Director Gheorghe Lucaciu. “ROMATOM will release a study by year end demonstrating the strong economic and jobs impact of constructing two more CANDU units at Cernavoda”, added Lucaciu.
Two important agreements were announced during the week-long trade mission. SNC-Lavalin and Nuclearelectrica signed a $13.9M contract to undertake a condition assessment of CNPP Unit 1 in preparation for the refurbishment of that unit. In addition, Nordion (Canada) Inc. and Nuclearelectrica concluded an MOU to evaluate the potential commercial production of Cobalt 60 at CNPP. Cobalt 60 is used to sterilize single-use medical devices, reduce pathogens in food and treat certain forms of cancer.
“Next steps in Romano-Canadian nuclear collaboration could see a team of Nuclearelectrica project managers and Romanian suppliers visiting Canada in early 2020 to learn more about the challenges involved in multi-faceted planning, contracting, and execution of life extension projects at OPG Darlington GS and at Bruce Power” added Oberth. OCNI, ROMATOM and Canadian trade commissioners in Bucharest also began preliminary planning for a follow-up Canadian trade mission in October 2020 to build on the results of this mission and continue to explore the financial and supply models for the construction of Cernavoda Units 3 & 4.
Organization of Canadian Nuclear Industries (OCNI) is an association of more than 200 Canadian suppliers to the nuclear industry that employ more than 14,000 highly skilled and specialized engineers, technologists, and trades people. OCNI companies design reactors, manufacture major equipment and components, and provide engineering services and support to CANDU nuclear power plants in Canada as well as to CANDU and Light Water Reactor (LWR) plants in offshore markets.
Romanian Atomic Forum Association (ROMATOM) has more than 35 active member companies that work in nuclear power equipment manufacturing, construction and erection, engineering design, and other services that support the nuclear industry in Romania. ROMATOM communicates with relevant governmental departments in promoting the safe, efficient and sustainable development and application of nuclear energy in Romania. ROMATOM is a member of the European Atomic Forum (FORATOM) and an active party in both the European and the national debate on energy strategy and sustainable policies.
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