Westinghouse will leverage global expertise and know-how to support the CANDU® fleet with short, mid and long-term spent fuel services.
Canada’s spent fuel is currently managed in facilities licensed for interim storage. Permanent, long-term solutions are underway for final spent fuel storage.
Westinghouse can provide utilities with all of the services necessary to transfer commercial spent nuclear fuel (SNF) from spent fuel pools to a dry cask storage system. These services can include complete turnkey responsibility for a canister loading/transfer campaign, to niche services such as fuel-handling operations and canister-closure welding. This allows the utility to lower costs by offsetting increased short-term manpower and training costs for performing canister loading in house. Westinghouse has well-established capabilities for the handling, transportation and storage of used fuel for a variety of reactor types including CANDU, PWR and BWR. Our qualified personnel and tooling are specialized for the handling and transportation of CANDU® spent fuel.
Our spent fuel services include:
- Testing, modification, repair and commissioning of used CANDU® fuel transportation packages
- Review of fuel dry storage container manufacturing and prototype construction
- Design and fabrication of used fuel dry story container lid clamp mechanisms for underwater loading and transport of containers prior to permanent lid welding
- Execution of used fuel transfer logistics study for transportation and handling of CANDU® used fuel from reactor sites to permanent storage facilities
Spent Fuel Interim Storage
Westinghouse has extensive experience in all fields required to properly handle spent fuel, including fuel design, fuel handling, waste management and plant design. We have the capabilities necessary to cover all processes involved in spent nuclear fuel handling, nuclear waste treatment, engineering and management. Westinghouse has comprehensive experience in the development, design and construction of facilities and equipment for spent fuel handling and intermediate wet or dry storage.