Quebec’s Only Nuclear Plant to Close

The Canadian province of Quebec’s newly elected Parti Quebecois government announced on Tuesday that it has decided to shutter the province’s 30-year-old Gentilly-2 nuclear plant.

The decision by the recently elected party, which has advocated for national sovereignty and secession from Canada, is a reversal of the previous Liberal government’s plan to invest in refurbishment of the CANDU reactor. The  675-MW plant provides only about 2% of the province’s power. The majority of Quebec’s power is supplied by hydro from the north of the province, whereas Gentilly-2, located about 100 kilometers from Montreal, provides grid stability. Its operating license had been extended in 2011 to 2016.

Sources: POWERnews, Hydro Quebec, UPI, World Nuclear Organization

—Gail Reitenbach, PhD, Managing Editor (@POWERmagazine)