Quebec could see an inactive nuclear power plant come back online as the province’s energy regulator reviews the state of the facility.
Hydro-Quebec said on Thursday that the shuttered Gentilly-2 nuclear power plant in Becancour is being studied as a possible avenue to meet the province’s electricity demand.
According to Le Journal de Montreal, Hydro-Quebec’s CEO Michael Sabia assigned a team to conduct a feasibility study on the power plant.
The energy provider has since confirmed that it’s looking to see whether the decommissioning of the plant is reversible.
“Concerning the Gentilly-2 station, an evaluation on the current state of the station is underway, to evaluate our options and to feed our reflection on Quebec’s future energy offering,” Hydro-Quebec told the Montreal Gazette.
“We are evaluating different possible options to increase the production of clean electricity. It would be irresponsible at this time to exclude certain energy sectors.”
The announcement comes just as the federal government reveals their net-zero clean electricity standards, requiring provinces to eliminate fossil fuels and high-emitting power sources from their energy supplies.
“We are in a context in the coming years where we will need massive terawatt hours to meet the demand that we anticipate in Quebec. We are at the stage where we want to look at all the options that are in front of us, including this one,” said Hydro-Quebec spokesperson Francis Labbe.
Decommissioning Gentilly-2 has cost Quebec taxpayers $80 million over a period of ten years. According to former director of the plant, Patrice Desbiens, it could require a whole new facility to be built should the government decide to reverse its plan to shutter the station.
“We have to look at what can be done … We have to look at all the ways to meet demand,” Labbe told Le Journal De Montreal.
“The idea is to make an inventory of the plant’s assets in order to document whether a return to service is conceivable or if it’s simply impossible.”
