Heavy Water Production Plants

Heavy water - water in which both hydrogen atoms have been replaced with deuterium - allows nuclear reactors to operate using natural uranium as fuel.

The Bruce Heavy Water Plant was the last remaining heavy water plant in Canada and was at one time the world's largest producer of heavy water.

Located on the Bruce Power site near Kincardine, Ontario, the plant began operating during the early 1970s, ceased production in 1997 and is now in a safe shutdown condition. When in service, the Bruce Heavy Water Plant produced heavy water for power reactors and did not use or generate any radioactive material.

Ontario Power Generation (OPG) is currently decommissioning the plant under a licence from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission. Most of the buildings and above-ground structures will be removed or demolished, and the site will be returned to a condition suitable for industrial use. Decommissioning activities are expected to be completed before 2014.