Thanks for a very interesting article. I read that it was a Canadian reactor which had operated continuously for over 1100 days. That's 3 years. Amazing reliability. That's what you want in an electricity source. There's an Indian reactor which has almost achieved that. I believe that both of those were stopped for planned shutdowns.
By the way you may be interested in Kathryn Porter's short report on the SPanish blackout. Makes interesting reading.
Way to go, Larry, I hope your fishing expedition on Lake Huron was in the warm water plume from the power station's CW outlet. Lake Ontario would have provided the same opportunity. We used to catch the biggest eels in the Waikato River in NZ, and mud crabs in the Gladstone Harbour in QLD, for exactly the same reasons. Memories…
Thank you for another great report, Larry, and I am very envious to learn that you having been swanning around in Ontario and visiting one of their nuclear power plants. You might be interested to know that our colleague, Dr Charles Rhodes, is also an Ontario native. He has an extensive and esteemed background as a Professional Electrical Engineer, consultant, university professor, researcher and developer of fast nuclear reactor technology, and is our expert technical reviewer. [His contact details are listed with our Australian Future Energy Initiative articles, here on SubStack].
The CANDU technology was born from a Canadian government determination to ensure the security and independence of their electricity supplies, noting that attitudes in Canada to electricity are necessarily very different to those of Australia, NZ, the UK and most states of the USA. Their extreme winter temperatures demand that no citizen be left out in the cold during winter. In other words, electricity generation and distribution is regarded as an essential service (much like it used to be in most other Western nations around the World).
Most notably, the Canadian concept of independence extends also to fuel supplies, and it was from this that the CANDU reactors were developed and proven over many years. Several of these have also been constructed overseas, mainly in northern Europe. Without going too deeply into the concept, the spent nuclear fuel from CANDU reactors is in-turn reprocessed to produce fuel which is suitable for a new form of reactor, Fast Neutron Reactors (FNR’s), which are capable of consuming almost all of the available nuclear energy.
This combination of technologies equates to that of a sustainable fuel cycle, where nuclear waste from older power plants can be used in CANDU reactors then reprocessed for use in FNR’s, with little to no waste. While our governments and their anti-nuclear lobbies are decrying the misinformed notion of nuclear waste being some great undesirable product, Canada is proving exactly the opposite. And we might wonder why our so-called ‘experts’ are not educating our political, academic and corporate sectors, along with the general population?
Note that, while the Canadians are installing SMR’s at this time, the need for a quick solution to rapidly emerging new growth in electricity supplies was stalled by the previous Canadian Government’s failure to accept and act on the emerging demand, when they should have, leaving little lead time for building and commissioning new CANDU and FN reactors (a far too familiar story of leadership failures).
SMR’s might be the faster option but, like all other conventional nuclear power generators, they are far from being the most efficient option. And they are also incapable of producing a sustainable fuel supply, as the CANDU and FNR power plants demonstrate.
Anyone with a keen interest in this topic - like you and your many readers - can readily explore this aspect of the Canadian electricity industry: A website created by Dr Rhodes provides extensive detail (albeit at a very high level, at times).
For what it’s worth, and having been born and raised in NZ just as the Hydro industry was experiencing exponential growth, my saddest memory is witnessing the actual loss of extensive tracts of land, flora and fauna from pristine forests and otherwise arable lands, all to sate the thirst for “free” hydro power. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?
I would far rather have witnessed the early adoption of the nuclear option, than the loss of large tracts of our beautiful countryside, and to perhaps also have enjoyed the opportunity to begin my power industry career in something far cleaner than the old Meremere Power Station.
Graeme thank you very much for this fabulous comment that adds so much more depth to this post.
I was not aware that the CANDU waste stream could be used in FN breeder reactors. The narrative at the site was that they were developing a dep geologically stable repository which I would suggest is a missed opportunity to supply FN reactors.
I too regret that we did not adopt Nuclear as I think we would be in a far better situation with regards to energy security.
Only too happy to be of service whenever I can, Larry, we share the same values and convictions. Before someone tries to assert another popular lie, I should have noted that the FNR's are not a technology which is still on the drawing board - there are at least three operating units around the World, and more on the way (none in either NZ or Aus, I'm very sorry to say. For your further interest, take a look at who is the biggest investor in the American technology company, Terrapower. Note that, while this might be the first FNR in the USA, it's patently not the first in the World.
Welcome back Larry. I lived in Ottawa, on the river, as a kid for three years and went to Nepean High, presumably in the electoral district that has given Canada its new PM a home. Loved the seasons, winter for skating and summer for fishing and swimming in the river. When you (or anyone else) has time, could I have any thoughts on the strategic implications of the study done for the EA by Paulo Soares on wind and solar generation scenarios, which I mentioned in a comment a few weeks back? For me, showing that for over 5% of the year our total wind generation would be less than a quarter of its average (40%) capacity levels, and worse stats for daytime solar interestingly, means we need a lot more firming generation as demand increases, so prices are not coming down anytime soon. None of this is reflected in any media.
Thanks Clive it wasn't easy to leave. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Canada. I would like to spend some more time there and experience the seasons as you fondly recall.
I will happily review the EA Paulo Soares wind and solar generation scenarios document, and it is on my list of things to address. Although not specifically addressing this document today's post "Wild Ride" does consider some of the implications of increasing wind generation. I hope you enjoy that in the interim.
Kathryn Porter is great. Always well informed and articulate. Canadian Chris Keefer is a fine source on all things nuclear, the Decouple podcast and also substack.
The decouple podcast is excellent and highly recommended. The most recent one on the SMR development at Darlington was very insightful. Chris Keefers main concern being that it’s a consented site and 3 × 300MW SMR’s is not good utilization of precious site and 4 × 1000MW CANDU would be better resource allocation.
I first heard about CANDU as an apprentice RF Technician for BCNZ in Wellington around 1977. Heard that some chap was giving a talk downtown and walked about five blocks to the meeting somewhere near the old town hall. That was my first intro to the "nuts and bolts" of nuclear power.
Ironic, given that Australia has enormous Uranium reserves and could probably make good coin out of nuclear waste dump if there was political will eg Maralinga
Thanks for a very interesting article. I read that it was a Canadian reactor which had operated continuously for over 1100 days. That's 3 years. Amazing reliability. That's what you want in an electricity source. There's an Indian reactor which has almost achieved that. I believe that both of those were stopped for planned shutdowns.
By the way you may be interested in Kathryn Porter's short report on the SPanish blackout. Makes interesting reading.
https://watt-logic.com/2025/07/16/voltage-inertia-and-the-iberian-blackout-part-2-a-faulty-solar-inverter-crashed-the-spanish-grid12088/
Thanks Steve the CANDU design is really interest with the fuel rod matrix and the ability to re-fuel online.
Thanks for the Kathryn Porter report, very much appreciated as I have not had a chance to follow up on that event now that the dust has settled.
Way to go, Larry, I hope your fishing expedition on Lake Huron was in the warm water plume from the power station's CW outlet. Lake Ontario would have provided the same opportunity. We used to catch the biggest eels in the Waikato River in NZ, and mud crabs in the Gladstone Harbour in QLD, for exactly the same reasons. Memories…
Thank you for another great report, Larry, and I am very envious to learn that you having been swanning around in Ontario and visiting one of their nuclear power plants. You might be interested to know that our colleague, Dr Charles Rhodes, is also an Ontario native. He has an extensive and esteemed background as a Professional Electrical Engineer, consultant, university professor, researcher and developer of fast nuclear reactor technology, and is our expert technical reviewer. [His contact details are listed with our Australian Future Energy Initiative articles, here on SubStack].
The CANDU technology was born from a Canadian government determination to ensure the security and independence of their electricity supplies, noting that attitudes in Canada to electricity are necessarily very different to those of Australia, NZ, the UK and most states of the USA. Their extreme winter temperatures demand that no citizen be left out in the cold during winter. In other words, electricity generation and distribution is regarded as an essential service (much like it used to be in most other Western nations around the World).
Most notably, the Canadian concept of independence extends also to fuel supplies, and it was from this that the CANDU reactors were developed and proven over many years. Several of these have also been constructed overseas, mainly in northern Europe. Without going too deeply into the concept, the spent nuclear fuel from CANDU reactors is in-turn reprocessed to produce fuel which is suitable for a new form of reactor, Fast Neutron Reactors (FNR’s), which are capable of consuming almost all of the available nuclear energy.
This combination of technologies equates to that of a sustainable fuel cycle, where nuclear waste from older power plants can be used in CANDU reactors then reprocessed for use in FNR’s, with little to no waste. While our governments and their anti-nuclear lobbies are decrying the misinformed notion of nuclear waste being some great undesirable product, Canada is proving exactly the opposite. And we might wonder why our so-called ‘experts’ are not educating our political, academic and corporate sectors, along with the general population?
Note that, while the Canadians are installing SMR’s at this time, the need for a quick solution to rapidly emerging new growth in electricity supplies was stalled by the previous Canadian Government’s failure to accept and act on the emerging demand, when they should have, leaving little lead time for building and commissioning new CANDU and FN reactors (a far too familiar story of leadership failures).
SMR’s might be the faster option but, like all other conventional nuclear power generators, they are far from being the most efficient option. And they are also incapable of producing a sustainable fuel supply, as the CANDU and FNR power plants demonstrate.
Anyone with a keen interest in this topic - like you and your many readers - can readily explore this aspect of the Canadian electricity industry: A website created by Dr Rhodes provides extensive detail (albeit at a very high level, at times).
For what it’s worth, and having been born and raised in NZ just as the Hydro industry was experiencing exponential growth, my saddest memory is witnessing the actual loss of extensive tracts of land, flora and fauna from pristine forests and otherwise arable lands, all to sate the thirst for “free” hydro power. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it?
I would far rather have witnessed the early adoption of the nuclear option, than the loss of large tracts of our beautiful countryside, and to perhaps also have enjoyed the opportunity to begin my power industry career in something far cleaner than the old Meremere Power Station.
Graeme thank you very much for this fabulous comment that adds so much more depth to this post.
I was not aware that the CANDU waste stream could be used in FN breeder reactors. The narrative at the site was that they were developing a dep geologically stable repository which I would suggest is a missed opportunity to supply FN reactors.
I too regret that we did not adopt Nuclear as I think we would be in a far better situation with regards to energy security.
Thanks again for this very insightful comment!
Only too happy to be of service whenever I can, Larry, we share the same values and convictions. Before someone tries to assert another popular lie, I should have noted that the FNR's are not a technology which is still on the drawing board - there are at least three operating units around the World, and more on the way (none in either NZ or Aus, I'm very sorry to say. For your further interest, take a look at who is the biggest investor in the American technology company, Terrapower. Note that, while this might be the first FNR in the USA, it's patently not the first in the World.
Welcome back Larry. I lived in Ottawa, on the river, as a kid for three years and went to Nepean High, presumably in the electoral district that has given Canada its new PM a home. Loved the seasons, winter for skating and summer for fishing and swimming in the river. When you (or anyone else) has time, could I have any thoughts on the strategic implications of the study done for the EA by Paulo Soares on wind and solar generation scenarios, which I mentioned in a comment a few weeks back? For me, showing that for over 5% of the year our total wind generation would be less than a quarter of its average (40%) capacity levels, and worse stats for daytime solar interestingly, means we need a lot more firming generation as demand increases, so prices are not coming down anytime soon. None of this is reflected in any media.
Thanks Clive it wasn't easy to leave. I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Canada. I would like to spend some more time there and experience the seasons as you fondly recall.
I will happily review the EA Paulo Soares wind and solar generation scenarios document, and it is on my list of things to address. Although not specifically addressing this document today's post "Wild Ride" does consider some of the implications of increasing wind generation. I hope you enjoy that in the interim.
Kathryn Porter is great. Always well informed and articulate. Canadian Chris Keefer is a fine source on all things nuclear, the Decouple podcast and also substack.
The decouple podcast is excellent and highly recommended. The most recent one on the SMR development at Darlington was very insightful. Chris Keefers main concern being that it’s a consented site and 3 × 300MW SMR’s is not good utilization of precious site and 4 × 1000MW CANDU would be better resource allocation.
I first heard about CANDU as an apprentice RF Technician for BCNZ in Wellington around 1977. Heard that some chap was giving a talk downtown and walked about five blocks to the meeting somewhere near the old town hall. That was my first intro to the "nuts and bolts" of nuclear power.
I suspect it was a great talk and topical at the time.
Good stuff Larry looks like nuclear is on the move except in Australia and NZ
Ironic, given that Australia has enormous Uranium reserves and could probably make good coin out of nuclear waste dump if there was political will eg Maralinga
Welcome back. Always good to look outside and see first hand what others are achieving