Planning for Nuclear Power

Thank you for the question. There is no limit to the distance electricity can be transferred from a generation source to an end user.  That being said, there is a loss of energy when electricity is transmitted far distances.  The amount of line loss depends on how the voltage and current levels are managed.  SaskPower tries to keep generation sources close to major load centres to avoid transmitting large amounts of energy great distances.  

Thank you for your questions. We’ve separated them and included the answer for each for easy reference. 

How can you justify the billions SMR’s cost for a population just over 1 million?

SaskPower is committed to achieving a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions power system by 2050 or earlier. Our research shows that nuclear power from SMRs has strong potential to provide reliable, emissions-free and cost-effective.

We continue to evaluate a range of low- and non-emitting generation options to determine what role they will play in helping us reach that goal. 

This will include expanding options that are already available to us, such as wind, solar and natural gas while also pursuing emerging, non-emitting baseload power generation options, such as nuclear power from small modular reactors.

Based on early estimates, the cost of electricity from the GE-Hitachi small modular reactor (SMR) could be competitive with alternative base load, zero- emissions generation options available in the early to mid 2030s. Based on the completion of the same SMR design by Ontario Power Generation by the end of 2028, SaskPower will have highly reliable cost estimates by the time a final investment decision is made in 2029 to build an SMR in Saskatchewan.

One could assume Moe is going ahead without a clear mandate by Sask residents. Why?

As part of our future supply planning, we asked about specific supply options in our Stage 2 survey. You can find the full results of that survey in our Stage 2 What We Heard report here, but we’ve also included the ‘Support for Generation Options’ for nuclear here for easy reference:

• 39.4% strongly support
• 25.8% somewhat support
• 10.7% somewhat oppose
• 14.8% strongly oppose
• 9.4% don’t know 

These numbers largely align with other publicly available research, such as Environics Research’s 2023 ‘Public Attitudes to Nuclear Power’ research which can be found here.

The water requirements given the droughts we are experiencing could be better used in crop production not to become contaminated – what plans are being made to address droughts and the high water volumes required? 

Water availability is a key consideration for a the SMR project. Surface water is used for cooling the steam cycle, which is the same principle that most coal-fired power plants and nuclear power plants operate under. Depending on the cooling technology and characteristics of the waterbody, water consumption of a thermal power plant can be kept quite low. We work closely with the Water Security Agency, who allocates water for things like power generation and irrigation projects.  We’re also doing a lot of evaluation of the technology requirements, cooling options, and waterbodies, so that potential impacts of the SMR facility can be well understood.

It is important to note that the cooling water is kept separate from the nuclear operations of the facility; therefore, when the water is returned to the water body it is not contaminated.

Long term storage of contaminated materials and decommissioning costs are astronomical – what plans are in place to manage the excessive costs and where are you planning on storing materials at the end? 

Before receiving a licence to construct and a license to operate a nuclear power facility our lifecycle regulator, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), requires that plans for waste management and decommissioning are well developed and funded. Producing these types of plans prior to licencing is unique to the nuclear industry. Through the planning phase of the SMR development project we’re working towards developing these plans. If you’re interested in learning more about how waste is regulated, please visit the CNSC’s website.

Canada’s plan for nuclear waste management is administered by the NWMO, who is tasked with developing a repository for long-term storage of all spent nuclear fuel from Canadian reactors. Spent fuel will need to be stored in the short-term, at the site of the facility. If you’re interested in learning more, please visit the NWMO’s website.

Ensuring our SMR project is economically viable is very important to us. Based on the completion of the same SMR design by Ontario Power Generation (OPG), SaskPower will work with OPG to better understand potential costs to inform our final investment decision in 2029 to build an SMR in Saskatchewan. The costs associated with managing the waste products from a nuclear power plant can be affordable because we get a lot of energy from very small amounts of fuel.

How many shares do the SaskPower Management & Moe have in Cameco and is this influencing decision making? Transparency is a necessity – that’s lacking in our Crowns – as the residents of Sask own the Crowns not SP

At SaskPower has a comprehensive Code of Conduct Policy that outlines that no confidential information or personal information shall be used by SaskPower personnel to derive any benefit for themselves, their family members, personal acquaintances or business associates. We take this very seriously and have several internal controls in place to ensure personnel adhere to this policy.

Individuals elected to the provincial legislature and members of Cabinet must adhere to the Members’ Conflict of Interest Act to ensure that Members do not use their elected office to further their private interest. To learn more about this Act, visit www.saskcoic.ca. 

Thank you for reaching out. Local and provincial economic development and Indigenous participation will be a top priority for this project, and we’ll be looking at ways to help build new supply chains in Saskatchewan. Exploring these opportunities will be an important theme of conversation through our Indigenous and public engagement and in our engagement with the Government of Saskatchewan. We expect to have details regarding specific opportunities associated with the BWRX-300 SMR project in the near future and then we’ll start engaging specifically with suppliers like you.

Most nuclear facilities in Canada safely store their high-level nuclear waste (spent fuel) on site, in accordance with federal regulations and overseen by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC). Part of the planning phase for SaskPower’s potential SMR project will include the development of waste management strategies for the lifecycle of the facility, including decommissioning.

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization (NWMO) has been mandated by the Government of Canada to design and implement a plan for the safe, long-term management of Canada’s used nuclear fuel in a manner that will protect people and the environment for generations to come. Canada’s plan will contain and isolate all the country’s used nuclear fuel – including that created by new and emerging technologies like SMRs – in a deep geological repository, using a multiple-barrier system. It is consistent with best practices adopted by other countries with nuclear power programs, such as Finland, France, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, and emerged through a three-year dialogue with the public.

Once the NWMO’s deep geological repository is permitted to contain fuel from SMRs, SaskPower will transfer all high-level waste to that facility for permanent storage.

To learn more about Canada’s plan, visit Nuclear energy in Canada (nwmo.ca).

While there are no Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) in commercial operation in Canada, there are a number either in the licencing or construction phase here and in other parts of the world (strictly speaking to power generation). 

Small scale nuclear reactors, as a technology, have been in safe operation for years, with over 160 ships in the United States navy currently powered by more than 200 small nuclear reactors.

SaskPower has concluded that deployment of the GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 Small Modular Reactor design in Saskatchewan presents a lower overall deployment risk with the strong likelihood of a materially lower cost of power than the other technologies that were evaluated. This is the same technology that was selected by Ontario Power Generation and several other US and European companies as well. Since Saskatchewan is a green field jurisdiction for nuclear power, we are aiming to be a close follower to other jurisdictions that are developing projects for SMRs.

The BWRX-300 is an enhanced and scaled down version of GE-Hitachi’s ESBWR technology, which has been in existence since 1955. This water-cooled reactor design utilizes enhanced passive safety systems that leverage the existing design and operating experience over the past several decades.

SaskPower is committed to achieving a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions power system by 2050 or sooner. To reach this goal, SaskPower is planning to significantly increase solar and wind generation in the coming years (up to 3,000 megawatts of new wind and solar by 2035).  

Currently, natural gas generation is the main source of baseload power that backs up these intermittent options. Utility-scale energy storage options, such as batteries, are something we are pursuing to be part of our power mix in the coming years. 

As a result of climate change, we must invest in and leverage many new tools and technologies in order to significantly reduce emissions, while keeping our grid reliable, sustainable, and cost effective.  This means we need to find the right balance of energy options as we make the transition.

Nuclear power would provide reliable, zero-emissions baseload electricity, create jobs and support the growth of our provincial economy. Learn more by visiting the Conference Board of Canada’s report: A New Power: Economic Impacts of Small Modular Nuclear Reactors in Electricity Grids (conferenceboard.ca).

A key component of our planning work is to determine how much water would be used in the cooling process of the BWRX-300. There are several processes that could be utilized but a final decision has not been made yet.  

Some existing nuclear power plants and some of SaskPower’s existing coal-fired power plants use treated wastewater for cooling purposes. This is being considered within the cooling technology review that is part of the planning stage for Small Modular Reactors in Saskatchewan.

There are many options related to the various cooling processes, with some resulting in more consumption and some less. Understanding these options is a key part of the planning work and ultimately, the goal is to have the smallest impact to the community and the surrounding ecosystem while maintaining a cooling process that is efficient and reliable.

We’re committed to reaching net-zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 or earlier while providing reliable, sustainable, and cost-effective power for the communities we serve. Right now, we’re seeking input from the public on their values, priorities and preferred power supply options as we update our long-term supply plan. Once this update is complete, the long-term plan will provide direction for annual planning. The annual plan recommends specific supply decisions and ensures short-term plans support long-term goals.

A location to site our Small Modular Reactor (SMR) development project has not been selected. We’re still evaluating an area near Estevan and an area near Elbow. Our goal is to have two potential locations selected in the coming months and a final site recommendation by the end of 2024.

Thanks for your question. There’s a lot to consider when looking at nuclear power from small modular reactors (SMRs). Many more years of detailed engineering design work would be required for the CANDU 3 to be ready for commercial deployment. The CANDU 3 is not currently in any phase of the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission’s VDR process and SaskPower is not aware of any utility in the world that is advancing an SMR project using the CANDU 3 design.   

To arrive at our decision to select the GE-Hitachi BWRX 300 , we completed an extensive evaluation of several technologies. We considered many factors including safety, technology readiness, generation size, fuel type and expected cost of electricity.

We also considered Ontario Power Generation’s (OPGs) selection of the same technology for their Darlington New Nuclear Project. They’re planning to have their first GE-Hitachi BWRX 300 SMR operational by 2030. By choosing the same technology, we can learn from OPGs experience. It helps lower our risk of scheduling delays related to the regulatory process and construction of the project. It also helps manage the project’s cost.