Point Lepreau Maintenance Involves 100’s of Contractors

Effective April 1, NB Power’s Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station will be offline for approximately seven weeks to complete regularly scheduled maintenance. The work will involve more than 600 contractors and tradespeople performing approximately 13,000 planned technical maintenance activities on both the conventional and nuclear components of the station during the outage.

The planned maintenance will coincide with seasonal increases in water flows in the hydro system and with lower seasonal electricity demand.

“Investing in ongoing planned maintenance at Lepreau is essential to getting the most in the long run out of this vital energy asset for New Brunswickers,” says Gaëtan Thomas, President and CEO.

On the conventional side of the station, the major projects include modifications to the Lepreau switchyard, which is the complex substation that connects the nuclear generating station to the New Brunswick electrical grid. This work will improve the reliability of the electrical system and is projected to save the company up to $3 million annually. Conventional work also includes replacement of two low pressure turbine rotors, and general maintenance and inspections work. On the nuclear side, workers are preparing to conduct a variety of repairs, modifications and inspections on multiple systems including the primary heat transport system.

“This is a significant amount of work that could only be completed with a substantial influx of skilled tradespeople who we’re very pleased to employ for this maintenance project. Together, we’ll be focused on ensuring high standards for safety and quality which will improve equipment reliability and predictability of performance at the station.”

This work has been coordinated with maintenance schedules at other generating stations throughout the province and will coincide with the increase in hydro electricity from the spring melt on the Saint John River. This will help ensure the lowest financial impact to the utility and ensure NB Power meets the ongoing electricity requirements of its customers.

The Point Lepreau Nuclear Generating Station is a 660 megawatt (net) nuclear generating station and a base load contributor to the New Brunswick electrical grid. It produces enough non-emitting electricity to power more than 333,000 homes per year and is a foundational piece of the province’s domestic energy supply and export sales.

Photo source: NB Power