New schedule for Point Lepreau
15 October 2010
Work to refurbish the Point Lepreau Candu 6 reactor should be complete in September to November 2012, said owner NB Power and Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd (AECL). The date is six months later than the previous schedule due to the recently announced need for AECL to remove all 380 new calandria tubes and polish the tube sheets to ensure an adequate fit. Originally the date set for the re-tubing part of the project was July 2009, but AECL president Hugh MacDiarmid said this was "overly ambitious from the start." After retubing is complete four months of commissioning will follow before Point Lepreau comes back in time for winter heating needs.