'SaskNuclear' established as subsidiary of SaskPower as province pursues SMRs

SaskPower has established a nuclear focused subsidiary to navigate the regulatory and licensing process of bringing nuclear power to the province.

According to an announcement on Wednesday, the subsidiary will allow SaskPower to advance its Small Modular Reactor (SMR) program from a “business and regulatory perspective.”

“Canada’s nuclear industry is held to a very high standard, and establishing a subsidiary dedicated to nuclear power will help SaskPower meet Canada’s strict regulatory requirements,” said Dustin Duncan, Minister Responsible for SaskPower.

The Government of Saskatchewan through SaskPower will need to build a nuclear information management system and establish a nuclear safety culture to become a licensed nuclear operator.

SaskNuclear will be wholly owned by SaskPower and will share a president and CEO as well as a board of directors.

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Despite the intensive work put into the prospect of nuclear power in Saskatchewan, the province will not officially decide whether to proceed with the program until 2029.

Differing from federal goals, the Government of Saskatchewan is currently aiming to reach net-zero by 2050.

So far, SaskPower has chosen the GE-Hitachi BWRX-300 as the SMR it will use in any potential deployment.

Additionally, SaskPower has narrowed down the potential sites for the reactor to the Estevan area.

SaskPower CEO Rupen Pandya said the creation of separate organization to handle Saskatchewan's nuclear aspirations is the right step forward.

"A key part of our planning and development work is to evaluate various business models that would advance our project as effectively as possible," he said.

"Establishing a nuclear subsidiary is the best option for a greenfield jurisdiction, like Saskatchewan."