Rebranded Nuclear Firm Seeks £50 Million to Revamp Candu Reactor

A company formerly embroiled in a major scandal during the Trudeau government is now seeking up to £50 million in annual funding to modernise a nuclear reactor that Canada has exported globally.

AtkinsRéalis, formerly known as SNC-Lavalin, launched the Canadians for Candu campaign earlier this year. The initiative aims to secure backing from both provincial and federal governments for the development of a new, more powerful Candu nuclear reactor, suitable for both domestic and international markets.

Gary Rose, executive vice-president of nuclear at AtkinsRéalis, stated that the campaign seeks to raise awareness about the potential of the Candu technology. "The campaign is all about promoting Candu, highlighting the fact that Canada possesses world-class nuclear technology," he said. "As provinces make decisions on which technologies they want to pursue for large-scale nuclear power, we want them to choose Candu, as it is a Canadian invention."

AtkinsRéalis holds the licence for Candu reactors, which were initially developed by the Canadian government in the 1950s. All of Canada's current nuclear reactors are Candu models, including three large plants in Ontario, which supply over half of the province's electricity. These reactors, deployed globally in countries such as Romania, China, Argentina, and India, have a strong safety record and are renowned for their reliability.

In 2011, the Harper government sold the rights to develop Candu reactors to what was then SNC-Lavalin for £10 million. The Crown corporation, Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, retained the intellectual property of the reactors.

Since securing the licence, AtkinsRéalis has undertaken extensive refurbishment projects and last year signed a deal to construct two new reactors in Romania with the support of export financing from the Canadian government.

The proposed Romanian reactors are Candu-6 models, capable of producing 700 megawatts of power. To attract more business, including within Canada, AtkinsRéalis is developing a new reactor, the Candu Monark, with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts.

To fund this development, AtkinsRéalis is seeking federal support. Rose stated that the company is currently investing £35 to £50 million annually on engineering to complete the Monark design and anticipates similar expenditure over the next three years. They are requesting that the government match this investment, potentially reaching a total cost of £225 million for taxpayers.

Rose asserted that this financial support is an investment, not a handout. "We are not asking for a gift," he said. "The intellectual property we develop for the Monark will remain owned by the Canadian government."

The Minister of Natural Resources, Jonathan Wilkinson, acknowledged the existence of the Canadians for Candu campaign but declined to comment further.

According to a study by the Conference Board of Canada, commissioned by AtkinsRéalis, the construction of four Candu Monark reactors within Canada would generate £30.5 billion in GDP for the country. The project would create 20,000 jobs during construction and an additional 3,500 per year for operations and maintenance.

AtkinsRéalis has identified a specific project for the Monark – the proposed expansion of the Bruce Nuclear plant in southern Ontario. This project, announced last year, aims to add up to 4,800 megawatts of power to the Bruce plant, which is already the largest nuclear installation in the world.

Ontario's former Minister of Energy, Todd Smith, stated last year that the province would require a significant increase in power generation. "Our government's business-friendly approach has resulted in unprecedented investments across the province," he said. "With our plan already in place to meet demand this decade, we are initiating pre-development work to identify future generation options, including reliable, affordable, and clean nuclear energy."

Rose anticipates that the Monark design work could be completed within the next four years, making it ready for construction by the end of this decade. He highlighted that the Monark represents an evolution of existing Candu technology, eliminating the need to start from scratch.

Over 85 per cent of the components required for a Monark reactor would be sourced from Canadian suppliers.

Aaron Johnson, a vice president with AECON construction who has worked on nuclear refurbishment projects with AtkinsRéalis and is part of the Canadians for Candu campaign, emphasised the economic benefits of new reactors. "An existing supply base already exists, and this would be further strengthened by a new Candu construction project," he said.

AECON and AtkinsRéalis have collaborated on numerous refurbishment projects for existing Candu reactors in Ontario, improving the efficiency of the process and reducing the time required for each project. Johnson believes this efficiency would translate to new Monark reactor construction.

"As long as the construction is undertaken properly with competent contractors and fabricators, there will be significant benefits in terms of how quickly and efficiently these reactors can be deployed," he said.

AtkinsRéalis's request for increased government funding comes as the company attempts to shed the SNC-Lavalin brand, which was tarnished by a scandal.

In 2019, the company pleaded guilty to fraud and accepted a £200 million fine for its activities in Libya between 2001 and 2011. The company admitted to paying nearly £35 million to the son of Libyan dictator Muammar Ghadafi to secure contracts.

Former Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould resigned from cabinet earlier that year after facing pressure from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's office to negotiate a deal with the company. The ethics commissioner ultimately determined that Trudeau had improperly pressured Wilson-Raybould.

Rose, who joined the company last year, expressed confidence in his decision to join, emphasizing that significant changes have occurred beyond just the company's name.

"The entire management team, leadership team, and supporting programmes – I believe it's a totally different company," he said.

Chris Keefer, president of the group Canadians for Nuclear Energy, acknowledges that AtkinsRéalis's former name poses a political challenge.

"It is a significant issue, and I think the solution is a consortium approach," he said. "There's a way to make this not just about AtkinsRéalis but rather a Team Canada or Team Candu approach."

Keefer's group does not receive funding from AtkinsRéalis and is not a member of Canadians for Candu, but he believes the reactor should receive government support. American company Westinghouse, which develops the AP1000 reactor, received U.S. government support for its design, and Keefer argues this is common practice in the industry.

"There is definitely a strong history of national governments backing their technology champions in this sector," he said. In Canada's case, the argument is even stronger, as the government would ultimately own the intellectual property.

Keefer stated that Candu reactors established Canada's nuclear industry and have provided employment for 60 years. He advocates for nuclear power as a high-tech sector that creates jobs in Canada, where the country can remain a leader.

"In terms of Canadian high tech, what really remains is nuclear, and it's so intact because of Candu," he said.

At the COP 28 climate change conference last year, over 20 countries, including Canada, pledged to triple nuclear power production by 2050.

Rose believes that Candu reactors could easily capture 10 per cent of the global market but require government support to achieve this goal.

"We are investing upfront with the hope of selling 25 reactors in Canada and 75 to 100 globally," he said. "Having the federal government stand behind us is crucial."