Nuclear location decision expected next month
Ontario Energy Minister Gerry Phillips said he expects to announce next month the location of the new nuclear reactors planned for the province.
Most of the attention so far has been on which nuclear technology will be chosen for the new power stations: Candu reactors, ones built by the French company Areva, or the U.S. company Westinghouse.
But Phillips said he's almost ready to announce exactly where the reactors will be situated.
The two contenders are the Darlington nuclear facility near Clarington, east of Toronto, and the Bruce power plant on Lake Huron.
"Almost certainly we will make a decision on the site when we go to Phase 2 of the proposals, which we will do in June," Phillips said on Friday.
Ontario's Liberal government has plans to build at least two, and possibly four, new reactors to help supply the province's future energy needs.
The energy minister said Darlington has an advantage over Bruce since it will be easier to upgrade Darlington's transmission lines.
And for that reason, many experts believe, Phillips will decide to build the new reactors at Darlington — inside the GTA.
But if that is the decision it will face strong opposition from Toronto Mayor David Miller.
"If they're going to choose to invest billions in Darlington, they won't be investing hundreds of millions in conservation and distributed energy in Toronto, and that matters very much for us," said Miller.
Jim Abernathy, the mayor of the Clarington, said the majority of area residents are comfortable with nuclear power, and it's the major employer for the community.
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