BWXT awarded $55M contract for Darlington nuclear plant

Apr 13, 2017 by Record staff Waterloo Region Record


CAMBRIDGE — BWXT Canada has been awarded a $55-million contract to supply feeder pipes for the Darlington nuclear power plant.


Under the contract with a joint venture of SNC-Lavalin and Aecon, the Cambridge company will supply feeder assemblies for units 1, 3
and 4 of the power plant in Bowmanville.


Feeder pipes transport heavy water coolant between the reactor and steam generators.


BWXT already has a contract with the joint venture to make feeder assemblies for the plant's unit 2. The company said work on the assemblies for the other three units will begin immediately.


The company said the project, which will take about five years to complete, will allow it to maintain is current staffing levels.


However, at certain peak times there could be opportunities for additional staff, company spokesperson Natalie Cutler said.


"This contract will allow us to sustain high-skilled, high-paying jobs while contributing to clean, affordable, safe and reliable power for Ontarians," BWXT Canada president John MacQuarrie said in a news release.


BWXT, a subsidiary of BWX Technologies Inc., headquartered in Lynchburg, Va., employs about 500 people in Cambridge, and another 350 in facilities in Peterborough, Toronto and Arnprior, Ont.


The contract is part of Ontario Power Generation's $12.8 billion refurbishment of the Darlington plant. The plant produces about 20 per cent of the province's electricity.