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Released May 12, 2025 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The Canadian province of Ontario is aligning itself to be the first location in a G7 country to have a grid-connected small modular reactor (SMR). SMRs are nuclear reactors that generally generate a few hundred megawatts and come with much smaller price tags and footprints than traditional nuclear facilities. While licenses, application and development of the technology are on the table in the U.S. and Europe, Canada is the first of these to actually give the go-ahead for construction of an SMR.
The reactor will be built next to the Darlington Nuclear Power Station in Bowmanville, Ontario. The technology chosen for the project is the BWRX-300 SMR, a 300-megawatt (MW) reactor developed by GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (Wilmington, North Carolina). The Ontario reactor will be the first BWRX-300 built for deployment, although GE Hitachi is confident in the technology. The company's web page describing the SMR states: "The BWRX-300 is a cost-competitive solution that can be deployed for electricity generation and industrial applications, including hydrogen production, desalination, and district heating. It features significantly less capital cost per MW when compared with a typical water-cooled SMR, and using a combination of modular and open-top construction techniques, the BWRX-300 can be constructed in 24-36 months while achieving a volume reduction in plant layout."
The SMR is the first of four envisioned at the site by Ontario Power Generation (OPG) (Toronto, Ontario), under whose auspices the reactor will be built. OPG already has begun early site preparation and expects to begin construction in the near future.
The first SMR will cost an estimated C$7.7 billion (US$5.5 billion) and will include infrastructure that can be used for the additional SMRs, putting its cost slightly higher than the remaining reactors. OPG estimates all four units would cost in the neighborhood of C$20.9 billion (US$15 million). OPG hopes to finish construction of the first SMR by the end of 2029 and connect it to the grid in 2030. The other units would be operating by 2035, according to plans. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can click here for the report on the initial reactor and click here for the report on the remaining three units.
GE Hitachi hopes this initial deployment of the BWRX-300 will open up markets for more SMR construction. In a press release, the company said: "As the first utility to commit to building a BWRX-300, OPG's experience will serve as a benchmark for other utilities considering SMR projects. Successful deployment at Darlington will demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of SMRs, encouraging broader adoption and investment in this transformative technology."
The go-ahead given by the provincial government comes as Ontario's Independent Electricity System Operator (Toronto), estimates the provinces power demand will increase 75% by 2050. "As it stands today, we just don't have the supply to meet that demand," said Stephen Lecce, Ontario's minister of energy and mines, speaking about the SMR approval.
To that end, projects at Ontario's traditional nuclear plants also are on the table. Since 2023, the Darlington plant, where the SMRs will be deployed, has been underway with a multibillion-dollar modernization of its Unit 4. The project entails refurbishing the reactor, turbine-generator, fuel-handling system and more, as well as replacing 480 pressure tubes and 900 feeder pipes. The work is expected to be completed by the end of 2026. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project report.
Similar modernizations are underway for units 3 and 4 at the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station in Bruce County, Ontario, with plans for the modernization of the plant's other units to last into 2033. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the related project reports.
Ontario's decision to deploy SMRs in addition to its traditional nuclear facilities will be closely monitored. In the U.S., the company furthest along in SMR design, licensing and potential deployment all but collapsed in late 2023 due to rising costs and delayed scheduling for a project in Idaho. The SMR's developer, NuScale (Tigard, Oregon), announced the project in 2015, with the aim of providing members of the Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) (Salt Lake City, Utah) 600 MW of power via 12 SMR units. The costs of the project continued to rise, finally tripling to $9.3 billion in 2023 despite the project's generating capacity having been scaled back to 462 MW two years prior and a seven-year delay in scheduling. UAMPS exited the project, causing NuScale's stock to plunge, large layoffs at the company, and its being sued by investors for fraud.
The debacle caused utilities and municipalities to question the promises of SMR technology. At the moment, the only two countries to deploy SMRs are China and Russia, and OPG's construction of GE Hitachi's technology will be somewhat of a proving ground for Western nations regarding the benefits and pitfalls of this up-and-coming technology.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Database can click here to view reports for many of the projects discussed in this article and click here for the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
The reactor will be built next to the Darlington Nuclear Power Station in Bowmanville, Ontario. The technology chosen for the project is the BWRX-300 SMR, a 300-megawatt (MW) reactor developed by GE Hitachi Nuclear Energy (Wilmington, North Carolina). The Ontario reactor will be the first BWRX-300 built for deployment, although GE Hitachi is confident in the technology. The company's web page describing the SMR states: "The BWRX-300 is a cost-competitive solution that can be deployed for electricity generation and industrial applications, including hydrogen production, desalination, and district heating. It features significantly less capital cost per MW when compared with a typical water-cooled SMR, and using a combination of modular and open-top construction techniques, the BWRX-300 can be constructed in 24-36 months while achieving a volume reduction in plant layout."
The SMR is the first of four envisioned at the site by Ontario Power Generation (OPG) (Toronto, Ontario), under whose auspices the reactor will be built. OPG already has begun early site preparation and expects to begin construction in the near future.
The first SMR will cost an estimated C$7.7 billion (US$5.5 billion) and will include infrastructure that can be used for the additional SMRs, putting its cost slightly higher than the remaining reactors. OPG estimates all four units would cost in the neighborhood of C$20.9 billion (US$15 million). OPG hopes to finish construction of the first SMR by the end of 2029 and connect it to the grid in 2030. The other units would be operating by 2035, according to plans. Subscribers to Industrial Info's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) Power Project Database can click here for the report on the initial reactor and click here for the report on the remaining three units.
GE Hitachi hopes this initial deployment of the BWRX-300 will open up markets for more SMR construction. In a press release, the company said: "As the first utility to commit to building a BWRX-300, OPG's experience will serve as a benchmark for other utilities considering SMR projects. Successful deployment at Darlington will demonstrate the feasibility and benefits of SMRs, encouraging broader adoption and investment in this transformative technology."
The go-ahead given by the provincial government comes as Ontario's Independent Electricity System Operator (Toronto), estimates the provinces power demand will increase 75% by 2050. "As it stands today, we just don't have the supply to meet that demand," said Stephen Lecce, Ontario's minister of energy and mines, speaking about the SMR approval.
To that end, projects at Ontario's traditional nuclear plants also are on the table. Since 2023, the Darlington plant, where the SMRs will be deployed, has been underway with a multibillion-dollar modernization of its Unit 4. The project entails refurbishing the reactor, turbine-generator, fuel-handling system and more, as well as replacing 480 pressure tubes and 900 feeder pipes. The work is expected to be completed by the end of 2026. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the project report.
Similar modernizations are underway for units 3 and 4 at the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station in Bruce County, Ontario, with plans for the modernization of the plant's other units to last into 2033. Subscribers can learn more by viewing the related project reports.
Ontario's decision to deploy SMRs in addition to its traditional nuclear facilities will be closely monitored. In the U.S., the company furthest along in SMR design, licensing and potential deployment all but collapsed in late 2023 due to rising costs and delayed scheduling for a project in Idaho. The SMR's developer, NuScale (Tigard, Oregon), announced the project in 2015, with the aim of providing members of the Utah Associated Municipal Power Systems (UAMPS) (Salt Lake City, Utah) 600 MW of power via 12 SMR units. The costs of the project continued to rise, finally tripling to $9.3 billion in 2023 despite the project's generating capacity having been scaled back to 462 MW two years prior and a seven-year delay in scheduling. UAMPS exited the project, causing NuScale's stock to plunge, large layoffs at the company, and its being sued by investors for fraud.
The debacle caused utilities and municipalities to question the promises of SMR technology. At the moment, the only two countries to deploy SMRs are China and Russia, and OPG's construction of GE Hitachi's technology will be somewhat of a proving ground for Western nations regarding the benefits and pitfalls of this up-and-coming technology.
Subscribers to Industrial Info's GMI Database can click here to view reports for many of the projects discussed in this article and click here for the related plant profiles.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 trillion (USD).
