Nuclear Energy Minister Smitherman has said nuclear reactors are part of Ontario’s DNA.
The McGuinty government is committed to ensuring that nuclear electricity continues to supply at least 50 per cent of Ontario’s electricity.
The current installed capacity of nuclear electricity is approximately 11,000 megawatts (MW). The McGuinty government proposes increasing nuclear capacity to 14,000 MW.
Ontario’s operating reactors begin to reach the end of their operational lives after 2010 and will require billions of dollars in repairs if they are to continue operating.
Smitherman must decide this year how to replace the 2,000 MW of the four aging reactors of Pickering B when they begin reaching the end of their lifespan in 2013.
The Ontario Power Authority and the McGuinty government have only proposed nuclear options for replacing the Pickering reactors. They have failed to develop a green option for replacing the reactors.
If the McGuinty government decides to rebuild the Pickering nuclear station, the six-year construction period would result in the release of nine to 23 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, depending on whether gas generation or imported coal is used to produce electricity to replace generation at Pickering.
If the McGuinty government decides to close the Pickering B reactors and replace them with new reactors, they can’t be built quickly. The government will have to increase electricity from fossil generation. That will lead to 21 to 55 million tonnes of additional greenhouse gas emissions between 2012 and 2022.
The McGuinty electricity plan estimates the cost of maintaining Ontario’s nuclear supply at 50 per cent to be $26 billion.
The government’s cost estimates are highly suspect. Independent financial analysts say the costs of building nuclear plants have more than doubled. The cost of the McGuinty nuclear plan is likely to be up to $50 billion.
In 2005, the McGuinty government estimated the cost of replacing Pickering with new reactors at $5.8 billion.
In 2008, Moody’s Investment Service estimated the cost for new reactors to replace Pickering at $15 billion.
Last September, Smitherman asked the Ontario Power Authority to review and expand its green energy targets, but refused to lower his commitment to spending billions to maintain nuclear supply.
The Deputy Minister of Energy has said publicly that the OPA review will propose only minor tweaking of green energy at best.
Canada’s largest environmental organizations, including Greenpeace, responded to Smitherman’s call for a review with a report showing that the only way to expand green energy is to replace ageing reactors, starting with Pickering.
Smitherman’s office has refused to adopt this advice and back off its nuclear commitments.
The Pembina Institute has shown how quick-to-deploy green energy options can replace the Pickering reactors and avoid the high-cost, higher greenhouse gas emissions and increased nuclear safety risks of replacing them with new reactors.
A new nuclear station will take over 10-years to build. Germany built 1,500 MW of wind power last year as part of its 20,000 MW wind system.
The current Ontario electricity plan caps green energy at about 5,300 MW. The cap is designed to ensure space for 14,000 MW of nuclear.
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For more information, please contact:
Brian Blomme, Communications Coordinator, (416) 930-9055Shawn-Patrick Stensil, Energy Campaigner, (416) 884-7053