Bruce A set for power boost from Siemens Energy steam turbines

The upgrades, part of the Project 2030 and life extension asset management projects, will increase each unit's output by about 30 MW and will be completed between 2028 and 2031.

Arne Wohlschlegel, Managing Director of Siemens Energy Canada, said: "Upgrading a power plant is the fastest way to get more energy onto the grid. When this upgrade is complete, Bruce Power will be able to deliver more clean energy throughout Ontario and extend the life of this plant for another 30 years."

The turbines being replaced were manufactured by C A Parsons, which is now part of Siemens Energy. Bruce Power's Project 2030 encompasses a series of measures across the site to increase output with the aim of increasing total output to 7,000 MW in the 2030s, adding about the equivalent one new large-scale reactor.

Part of this is the Major Component Replacement - or MCR - which involves removing and replacing key reactor components including steam generators, pressure tubes, calandria tubes and feeder tubes and adding 30-35 years to the reactor's operating life. The process has already been completed at Bruce 6, which returned to commercial service in September. Unit 3 is currently undergoing MCR. Units 5, 7 and 8 are also be refurbished, with units in overlapping MCR outages until 2033.

David Furr, Vice-President, Supply Chain for Bruce Power, said: "Bruce Power’s project work is enhancing the safety, efficiency and reliability of our existing units and providing more clean energy for the people, homes, businesses and hospitals in Ontario."

The Bruce Power site in Tiverton, Ontario, consists of eight units - four in Bruce A and four in Bruce B. Bruce A includes two Candu-791 reactors and two Candu-750 reactors. Bruce B has four Candu-750s. The federal government announced CAD50 million (USD36 million) of funding in February last year to support pre-development work to study the feasibility of building 4800 MWe of new generating capacity, as Bruce C.