Members

Seven people in hard hats in a turbine hall

​About our Members​

 The members of the CANDU Owners Group are nuclear operators who invest in achieving operational excellence through collaboration. Every day, through their employees’ contributions to COG, they demonstrate their commitment to this principle, the vision that has made so many achievements possible.

Timeline of COG membership -- click image to open PDFIn 1984, the CANDU Owners Group was formed by Atomic Energy Canada Limited (AECL), Ontario Hydro, Hydro- Québec and New Brunswick Power. As CANDU plants were built worldwide, international members joined COG, further strengthening the opportunities to pool resources for innovative research, development and joint projects. This collaborative model also created a diverse pool of shared expertise and operating experience across a global CANDU fleet.

Over time, Hydro-Québec and AECL left the COG membership due to business-model changes, but both returned in recent years as program participants (along with the Nuclear Waste Management Organization) to participate in areas of collaboration still relevant to them today. As well, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, the company managing AECL’s assets and national lab operations, holds the COG board seat previously held by AECL. Through COG, the members invest approximately $70 million annually in R&D and joint project activities, an investment in innovation in line with the spending of Top 20 private-sector organizations in Canada. 

Together, through COG and individually, the members have achieved tremendous accomplishments in nuclear science starting with the development of CANDU technology.  Today, they continue to meet new challenges and opportunities with innovation solutions while continually improving their operational and project expertise. ​

Canadian Members

​Bruce Power Canada flag

Aerial view of Bruce Power Generating Station

Bruce Power joined COG as a member in 2001, the same year it was formed. An electric utility partnership based in Tiverton, Ontario, 250 km northwest of Toronto, Bruce Power is Canada’s first private nuclear generator. It provides 30 per cent of Ontario’s power from the shores of Lake Huron. Bruce Power is a voting member on COG’s Board of Directors, represented by Gary Newman, Senior Vice President, Engineering & Chief Engineer. 

The eight-unit ​​plant has more than 4,000 employees, over 90 per cent of whom own a part of the company. Bruce Power is a partnership among TransCanada Corp., Borealis Infrastructure, the Power Workers’ Union and The Society of Energy Professionals.

For more than 30 years, the four reactors at Bruce Power’s Bruce B Generating Station have produced a steady supply of the world’s Cobalt-60 medical isotopes. These are used to sterilize single-use medical devices and for radiatio​n-based treatments of cancer and other diseases.

In 2016, Bruce Power began its Life Extension Program, enabling its units to operate safely to 2064.



 

COG contact
Carlos Lorencez
carlos.lorencez@candu.org
(416) 595-1888 x5123


 

www.brucepower.com

Canadian Nuclear Laboratories​ (CNL) Canada flag

Aerial view of Chalk River Laboratories

Established in 2014, Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited. CNL joined COG as a member in 2015. Employing approximately 3,400 people at 12 locations across Canada, CNL’s corporate headquarters and core research and development operations are situated at Chalk River Laboratories in the upper Ottawa Valley. CNL is a voting member on COG’s Board of Directors represented by Jeffrey Griffin, Vice President, Science and Technology.

CNL is a world leader in developing peaceful and innovative applications from nuclear technology through its expertise in physics, metallurgy, chemistry, biology and engineering. Highly-skilled employees deliver a range of nuclear services – ranging from research and development, design and engineering to specialized technology, waste management and decommissioning.

CNL is committed to ensuring that Canadians and the world receive energy, health, and environmental benefits from nuclear science and technology with confidence that nuclear safety and security are assured. In 2019, CNL and TRIUMF announced they had completed the first joint production run of actinium-225, a rare medical isotope that shows great promise as the basis for new, cutting-edge cancer therapies.

It plans to become a global hub for small modular reactor research and technology and intends to have a demonstration unit built on a CNL site by 2026.


 

COG contact
Carlos Lorencez
carlos.lorencez@candu.org
(416) 595-1888 x5123


 

www.cnl.ca

New Brunswick Power​ ​Canada flag

Exterior view of Point LePreau Generating Station

New Brunswick Power (NB Power) is the largest electric utility in Atlantic Canada and a founding member of COG. New Brunswick was Canada’s third province to produce electricity using nuclear energy. It operates Atlantic Canada’s only nuclear facility, Point Lepreau Generating Station, which went into service in 1983. NB Power is a voting member on COG’s Board of Directors represented by Michael Hare, Deputy Chief Nuclear Officer.

Point Lepreau has one nuclear reactor, a CANDU-6 unit and it was the first CANDU-6 to be licensed for operation and to begin commercial operation. The unit supplies about 30% of the energy consumed in the province.

NB Power completed a refurbishment of Point Lepreau in 2012, extending the station’s life to 2039. Since returning from refurbishment, the station has been recognized for continually improved performance and excellence in plant operation.

NB Power and the provincial government are partnering in research for potential development of small modular reactors with two private-sector companies.


 

​COG contact
Sonia Qureshi
sonia.qureshi@candu.org
(416) 595-1888 x5192


 

www.nbpower.com


 

Ontario Power Generation​ (OPG) Canada flag

Aerial view of OPG's Darlington nuclear generating station

Ontario Power Generation (OPG), a successor company of the former Ontario Hydro, is 100 per cent owned by the Province of Ontario. Ontario Hydro was one of the founding members of COG’s predecessor, CANDev (CANDU Development) and formation of COG in 1984. OPG is one of the largest and most diverse clean power producers in North America and currently operates Darlington, Pickering A and Pickering B nuclear generating stations in addition to other assets, including a fleet of hydro-electric stations. OPG is a voting member on COG’s Board of Directors represented by Carla Carmichael, Vice President, Project Assurance and Contact Management.

Pickering A station went into service in 1971 followed by Pickering B in 1983. Today, it continues to provide up to 20 per cent of the province’s electricity on any given day and is  experiencing some of its best life-time performance.

Darlington is currently undergoing a refurbishment. One unit has been taken out of service while the other three continue to generate electricity. The refurbishment is expected to create 14,200 jobs per year and extend the life of the plant by 30 years.

OPG previously operated Bruce A and Bruce B nuclear generating stations until May 2001 when they were leased to Bruce Power. OPG’s Darlington and Pickering Nuclear stations together are capable of providing about 30 to 35 per cent of Ontario’s electricity needs.


 

​COG contact
John Sowagi
john.sowagi@candu.org
(416) 595-1888 x5105


 

www.opg.com

​International Members

China National Nuclear Operations Management​ ​(CNNO) China flag

Aerial view of Qinshan nuclear power plant

​China National Nuclear Operations Management (CNNO) has been a COG member since 2003. CNNO is the operator of the Qinshan Phase III (Third Qinshan) nuclear power plant situated in China’s Zhejiang Province. It is adjacent to Qinshan Phase I (Unit 1) and Qinshan Phase II (Units 2 and 3) nuclear power plants.

In 1996, Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL) signed a $4-billion contract for the sale of two CANDU 6 reactors to China.

Qinshan Phase III (Units 4 and 5) use the CANDU-6 technology and are the first heavy water reactors to operate in China. Construction started in June 1998 with AECL as the general contractor. Qinshan Unit 4 began commercial operation on Dec. 31, 2002 and Qinshan 5 on July 24, 2003. Qinshan is the first CANDU-6 project to use open-top reactor building construction and the first project where commercial operation began earlier than its projected date.

Approximately one-third of all new nuclear power plant construction in the world is currently taking place in China.


 

​​COG contact
Wei Shen
wei.shen@candu.org
(416) 595-1888 x5168


 

en.cnnc.com.cn


Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) Korea flag

Nighttime view of Wolsong Generating Station

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. Ltd (KHNP) joined COG as a member in 1986 and is Korea’s largest electric power utility. In 1976, construction began on the Wolsong Generating Station, the first third-generation CANDU reactor export to Asia. Since then, three more CANDU units were added to KHNP’s Wolsong facility. 

KHNP is owned by Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO), an arm’s length government corporation. KHNP operates 23 nuclear power units with five new units currently under construction. Out of the 23 operational units in Korea, three are CANDU-6 reactors located at the Wolsong plant. Nuclear provides about 32 per cent of total power generation in Korea.

A critical example of COG-KHNP collaboration has been in the implementation of the utility’s decade-long safety improvement plan for which COG has served as a training partner.


 

COG contact

KiSang Jang
kisang.jang@candu.org
(416) 595-1888 x5131


 

www.khnp.co.kr

Nucleoeléctrica Argentina Sociedad Anónima​ ​(NA-SA) Argentina flag

Aerial view of Embalse Nuclear Plant

Nucleoeléctrica Argentina Sociedad Anónima (NA-SA) are the owners and operators of the single-unit Embalse Nuclear Plant. It is one of two nuclear power stations in Argentina currently operational. NA-SA joined COG in 1986.

Nuclear power provides 28 per cent of energy to houses in Argentina. The energy provided by Embalse is supplied to the national grid. On average, Embalse provides enough energy to support the needs of 3-4 million people. 

The energy generated reaches the Argentine Northwest, Cuyo, Center Region, Greater Buenos Aires and Litoral. As well as supplying electricity, Embalse also produces the Cobalt-60 radioisotope used in medical and industrial applications.

In 2019, Embalse returned to service following the completion of a life extension project that will enable the plant to operate for 30 more years.


 

​COG contact
Sergio Russomanno
sergio.russomanno@candu.org
(416) 595-1888 x5116


 

www.na-sa.com.ar

Nuclear Power Corporation of India (NPCIL)​ India flag

Exterior view of Kaiga Atomic Power Station

Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) is a public-sector enterprise under the administrative control of India’s Department of Atomic Energy. NPCIL joined COG in 1992. 

The company operates six nuclear power stations: Tarapur Atomic Power Station in Maharashtra; Rajasthan, Madras in Tamil Nadu, Narora in Uttar Pradesh, Kakrapar in Gujarat and Kaiga in Karnataka. In total, NPCIL operates 22 commercial nuclear power reactors. Its first PHWR unit, Rajasthan-1 came into service in 1973 and its most recent, Kaiga-4, in 2011.

Starting in 2020, COG and NPCIL will collaborate on a leadership training initiative for nuclear professionals in India.

The nuclear industry is rapidly growing in India. In addition to the recent construction of four new reactors, it is estimated that India will invest up to $50 billion in nuclear technology over the next decade.


 

COG contact
Usha Menon
usha.menon@candu.org​
(416) 595-1888 x5139


 

www.npcil.nic.in

Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica (SNN) Romania flag

Exterior view of Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant

Societatea Nationala Nuclearelectrica (SNN) operates Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant, the only nuclear power station in Romania featuring the only CANDU reactors operating in Europe. SNN joined COG as a member in 1991. SNN is a voting member on COG’s Board of Directors represented by Dumitru Benchea, Engeering Director.

SNN is a state-owned company that reports directly to Romania’s Ministry of Energy. Cernavoda Unit 1 came into service in 1996 while Cernavoda Unit 2 came online in 2007. 

In 2014, SNN became sole owner of Energonuclear, the project company responsible for development of the Cernavoda Units 3 and 4 project implementations.

The electricity annually generated by Cernavoda represents approximately 18 per cent of Romania’s electricity production. In 2018, SNN celebrated 20 years of safe, clean and reliable operation at Cernavoda.

Building on its strong performance, a planned refurbishment of Cernavoda Unit 1 is scheduled to move forward in 2026. This will allow the safe operation of the unit for another 30 years.


 

​COG contact
Fenia Ignat
fenia.ignat@candu.org
(416) 595-1888 x5174


 

www.nuclearelectrica.ro​​