ATS to supply tooling system to Bruce Power for life extension work

10 July 2018


Canada’s Bruce Power has awarded a CAD60m ($46m) contract for specialised tools to Ontario-based ATS Automation Tooling Sytems.

ATS said that it will design and construct automated component removal tools to enable hundreds of fuel channels and calandria tubes to be safely removed remotely from reactors that are being refurbished as part of Bruce Major Component Replacement (MCR) programme. Work is to be carried out over the next 18 months.

In December 2016, ATS signed a contract worth at least CAD40m for the supply of automated tooling systems and related services. In autumn 2017, the company began construction of a facility at its Cambridge (Canada) campus where its tooling will be tested on an exact replica of some of the Bruce Power reactor infrastructure. ATS is developing similar system for refurbishing Ontario Power Generation's Darlington.

MCRs are to be carried out at units 3-8 of the Bruce nuclear plant as part of a CAD13bn Life Extension Programme, launched in 2016 to enable the Bruce A and B plants to operate until 2064. Bruce A 1&2 have already been refurbished. The MCR programme will begin with Bruce 6 in 2020, with the other units following. All 480 of the reactor's fuel channels and calandria tubes will be removed and replaced.


Photo: Bruce Nuclear Plant



Privacy Policy
We have updated our privacy policy. In the latest update it explains what cookies are and how we use them on our site. To learn more about cookies and their benefits, please view our privacy policy. Please be aware that parts of this site will not function correctly if you disable cookies. By continuing to use this site, you consent to our use of cookies in accordance with our privacy policy unless you have disabled them.