Alberta, Saskatchewan to cooperate on nuclear energy

03 May 2024

The governments of the Canadian provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan have signed a memorandum of understanding to advance the development of nuclear power generation in support of both provinces' need for affordable, reliable and sustainable electricity grids by 2050.

(Image: Pixabay)

The MoU will support collaboration and information sharing on key areas of nuclear power generation, including nuclear supply chains and workforce development, the security of supply of fuels, and the development and regulation of nuclear reactor technologies, including small modular reactors (SMRs). The provinces will also work to advance industrial decarbonisation and enhance grid capabilities.

In 2019, the provinces of Saskatchewan, Ontario and New Brunswick signed an MoU to advance SMRs in Canada, with Alberta formally joining the MoU in 2021. The Interprovincial Strategic Plan for the Development of Small Modular Reactors, developed by the four provinces, was released in March 2022.

The new, bilateral MoU between Saskatchewan and Alberta has additional areas of interest such as industrial decarbonisation and grid reliability.

"Saskatchewan has a long-standing cooperative relationship with Alberta on energy development, and we share similar challenges and opportunities related to decarbonisation," Crown Investments Corporation Minister Dustin Duncan said. "I look forward to continued collaboration with the Government of Alberta on meeting the power needs of our provinces, while growing our economies and introducing new nuclear industries."

"Alberta is proud to partner with Saskatchewan on further exploring how we can ensure our power grids are affordable, reliable, and sustainable," said Alberta Affordability and Utilities Minister Nathan Neudorf. "Our provinces are leading the world in responsible energy development, and we look forward to learning from Saskatchewan's experience with nuclear generation."

Saskatchewan is home to the largest and highest-grade uranium mines in the world, but does not currently have any nuclear power reactors. The province announced in November that it is providing CAD80 million (USD59 million) for the Saskatchewan Research Council to pursue the demonstration of a microreactor in Saskatchewan, with plans for a Westinghouse-designed eVinci micoreactor to be operational in the province from 2029.

Last year, Alberta announced a CAD7 million investment in a multi-year study of the deployment of SMRs for the province's oil sands operations. At that time, Alberta Minister of Energy and Minerals Brian Jean said SMRs "are a critical component of the clean power generation supply mix and hold promise for the oil sands".

In January, an agreement was signed between North American power producer Capital Power Corporation and Ontario Power Generation that will see the two companies work together to examine the feasibility of developing grid-scale SMRs in Alberta, including possible ownership and operating structures. The feasibility assessment will be completed within two years.

Former Canadian uranium mine site returned to province

03 May 2024

The Province of Saskatchewan has released the former Cluff Lake uranium mine and mill site from decommissioning approvals and its associated surface lease, Orano Canada Inc has announced. The area now has unrestricted public access.

The former Cluff Lake mine and mill site (Image: Orano)

The project, which is some 75 km south of Lake Athabasca and 15 km east of the border with the Province of Alberta, operated from 1979 to 2002, producing more than 62 million pounds U3O8 (23,848 tU) from two underground mines and four open pit mines. The operation also included a tailings management facility, a mill and other support facilities. The Cluff Lake Project is located on Treaty 8 territory, the Homeland of the Métis, and is within the traditional territories of the Dene, Cree, and Métis people. Cluff Lake was fully decommissioned in 2013.

In May last year, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) revoked the uranium mine licence held by Orano Canada for Cluff Lake Project, clearing the way for Orano to transfer the site to the Province of Saskatchewan.

The CNSC has previously released properties at legacy uranium mining sites to provincial control, but Cluff Lake was the first decommissioned "modern" uranium mine to reach this milestone.

With the recent acceptance of a long-term monitoring and maintenance plan, and the provision of adequate funds by Orano to the Province of Saskatchewan to carry out the efforts (in perpetuity), the Cluff Lake property will now be transferred into the provincial Institutional Control Program (ICP). The programme was set up by Saskatchewan in 2007 as part of its institutional control framework for the long-term management of decommissioned and reclaimed mine and mill sites on provincial Crown lands.

The ICP allows for coordination between the provincial Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Energy and Resources, and provides clear direction for mining companies on what is necessary for a property to be transferred. The programme also ensures that any long-term monitoring, maintenance or response to overseen events is funded by the company.

The area now has unrestricted public access, with no restrictions on traditional land use. Orano noted that numerous studies have concluded that the area is safe today and into the future for hunting, fishing, drinking water and the gathering of berries.

"The achievement of full decommissioning of the Cluff Lake site and its return to nature is something that we at Orano are very proud to celebrate," said Orano Mining CEO Xavier Saint Martin Tillet. "The project shows that we, as responsible miners, have the ability and the experience to bring a uranium mining project through the entire life cycle successfully."

"Over the past 20 years many employees, past and present, contractors and community members have been involved in making this a reality and we thank them for their dedication, commitment and expertise," added Orano Canada President and CEO Jim Corman.

Minister of Energy and Resources Jim Reiter said: "We are proud of Orano's 60-year legacy in our province. Our government is pleased with the contributions they have made to our economy and global energy security. Saskatchewan is home to the highest-grade uranium in the world and has consistently ranked as one of the top global jurisdictions for mining investment."

Cameco says outlook for 2024 'remains solid'

02 May 2024

CEO Tim Gitzel said the Canadian nuclear fuel company's results for the first quarter of 2024 - with losses of CAD7 million (USD5 million) - were driven by normal quarterly variations, coupled with costs related to its acquisition last year of Westinghouse.

Key Lake, in Saskatchewan, is the world's largest high-grade uranium milling operation (Image: Cameco)

"In the first quarter operational performance was strong across our uranium, fuel services and Westinghouse segments," Gitzel said. "Financial results are in line with the 2024 outlook we provided, which has not changed, and are as expected, reflecting normal quarterly variability and the required purchase accounting and other non-operational acquisition-related costs for Westinghouse."

First-quarter production results were "strong and are on track with our 2024 plans", he said. Attributable uranium production for the quarter was 5.8 million pounds U3O8 (2231 tU), a year-on-year increase of 1.3 million pounds U3O8. The mining operations at McArthur River/Key Lake and Cigar Lake are each expected to produce 18 million pounds U3O8 (on a 100% basis) in 2024.

Cameco closed its acquisition of Westinghouse, in a strategic partnership with Brookfield, last November. Cameco now owns a 49% interest and Brookfield owns the remaining 51%. The company had previously said it expects this to generate a net loss of between CAD170 million and CAD230 million in 2024 due to the impact of the purchase accounting, which requires the revaluation of Westinghouse's inventory and other assets at the time of acquisition, and the expensing of some non-operating acquisition-related transition costs. CAD123 million of the expected net loss for Westinghouse in 2024 was incurred in the first quarter "due to normal variability in the timing of its customer requirements and delivery and outage schedules".

Westinghouse's first quarter "is typically its weakest", Cameco said in its quarterly in-depth management’s discussion and analysis (MD&A) document, with stronger expected performance in the second half of the year, and higher expected cash flows in the fourth quarter, and Gitzel said the company was "delighted" with its acquisition. "It's even better than we thought when we bought it," he told investors. "The potential there in all elements of their business is really good."

Inkai update

Production from the Inkai joint venture in Kazakhstan was slightly down year-on-year, with 1.6 million pounds U3O8 produced this quarter compared with 1.9 million pounds in the same period in 2023 (both on a 100% basis). Inkai’s current production target for 2024 is 8.3 million pounds of U3O8 (100% basis), but procurement and supply chain issues, most notably related to the availability of sulphuric acid, mean this target is tentative.

Cameco said it is working with its closely with JV Inkai and its joint venture partner Kazatomprom to receive its share of production via the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, which does not rely on Russian rail lines or ports, but warned that delays to deliveries could happen "if transportation using this shipping route takes longer than anticipated".

"To mitigate the risk of transportation delays or production shortfalls, we have inventory, long-term purchase agreements and loan arrangements in place we can draw on," the company said.

Partnership for ARC-100 commercialisation

02 May 2024

A trilateral collaboration agreement has been signed to further cooperation between Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, ARC Clean Technology and New Brunswick Power with the goal of establishing teaming agreements for global small modular reactor fleet deployment. It follows the signing of a memorandum of understanding last November.

The signing of the collaboration agreement (Image: ARC/Linkedin)

Through the MoU signed last year, the three companies have been exploring collaboration opportunities for the commercialisation of ARC's ARC-100 - an advanced small modular reactor (SMR) - in Canada, South Korea, the USA and other jurisdictions where Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) has business operations.

The new collaboration agreement - signed during the Reuters SMR and Advanced Reactor 2024 Conference in Atlanta, Georgia - establishes firm commitments to deliverables, processes and timelines to advance discussions for participation and potential investment in the deployment of ARC units, starting with the commercial demonstration unit in the Canadian province of New Brunswick.

Since 2018, ARC and NB Power have been working together on the development of the ARC-100. In July last year, NB Power, in partnership with ARC, submitted an environmental impact assessment registration document and an application for a site preparation licence for an SMR at the Point Lepreau nuclear power plant site in New Brunswick. The demonstration unit is slated for commissioning by 2029, subject to approvals and licensing. The deployment of the ARC-100 in New Brunswick is part of a joint strategic plan on SMR development and deployment released by the governments of Ontario, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Alberta in 2022.

"While we focus our capabilities on technological development for Korea's Innovative SMR (i-SMR) to have the highest level of competitiveness in the world, we are pushing for timely entry into the 4th generation SMR market," said KHNP CEO Jooho Whang. He added that "global cooperation is necessary for accelerating the development and construction of 4th generation SMRs, and the strengths of the leading companies in Canada as well as KHNP will lead to synergy in cooperation".

ARC Clean Technology Canada President and CEO Bill Labbe said: "We are excited to take the next step in formalising our relationship through today’s agreement. ARC is seeing significant growth and interest from multiple heavy industries and global jurisdictions for use of our technology. Together, ARC, KHNP and NB Power will be first movers in the industry with a turnkey solution for commercial deployment."

"Small modular reactors are an important part of NB Power’s strategic plan to meet government mandates to phase out coal by 2030 and achieve net-zero supply by 2035,” added NB Power President, CEO and Chief Nuclear Officer Lori Clark. "The agreement with KHNP and ARC will assist us in deploying the clean energy we need to meet our climate goals and maintain energy security for New Brunswickers. In addition, we are excited about what this could mean for potential future commercialisation opportunities."

The ARC-100 is currently undergoing the second phase of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission's pre-licensing Vendor Design Review process, having completed the first phase in 2019.

Researched and written by World Nuclear News