Bruce Power
Canadian nuclear power operator responsible for the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station on Lake Huron.
Last updated August 22, 2026
AI crawler reads
4requests
1companies- Anthropic4
- Profile
- 2
- Controversies
- 0
- JSON · MD
- 0
- First read
- Nov 4, 2026
- Latest read
- Nov 4, 2026
From this site's server log
Overview
Bruce Power is a privately held Canadian nuclear-power partnership based in Tiverton, Ontario. Its principal business is operating and maintaining the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station, a two-station complex on the shore of Lake Huron between Kincardine and Saugeen Shores. The facility consists of eight CANDU reactors, four in Bruce A and four in Bruce B, with an aggregate generating capacity of approximately 6,400 megawatts. When the full fleet is operating, it normally supplies close to 30 percent of the electricity consumed on Ontario's provincial grid. The company was created in 2001 after Ontario Hydro was reorganized and the Bruce site was leased by Ontario Power Generation to a private operating partnership. Its original investors included British Energy, Cameco Corporation, the Power Workers' Union and the Society of Energy Professionals. British Energy's financial difficulties led to a transition to Canadian ownership in 2003. Ownership subsequently changed again as infrastructure investors acquired interests, including the purchase of Cameco's stake by Borealis Infrastructure, now associated with OMERS. The partnership structure also gives employee and labour organizations an ownership role. Bruce Power's defining business story has been the recovery and life extension of the Bruce fleet. Bruce A Units 3 and 4 returned to service in 2003 and 2004 after being laid up by the site's previous operator. Units 1 and 2 then underwent a multibillion-dollar refurbishment and returned to the Ontario grid in 2012, restoring the four-unit Bruce A station to full operation for the first time in many years. The restart project was described as one of Canada's largest infrastructure undertakings and involved extensive engineering, construction, safety and supply-chain work. In 2015, Bruce Power and the Ontario government reached an arrangement for a further refurbishment of Units 3 through 8. The approximately $13 billion program began in 2016 and is intended to extend the operating lives of six reactors while preserving a large source of low-carbon baseload electricity. Bruce Power has said the work would support thousands of jobs and substantial economic activity in Ontario, while the company would bear the risk of refurbishment cost overruns under the agreement. The work is being carried out over multiple years rather than through a single plant-wide shutdown. Beyond electricity generation, Bruce Power has pursued medical-isotope production. In 2022 it announced completion of a facility associated with the production of lutetium-177, an isotope used in certain targeted radiopharmaceutical applications. The project involves processing and commercialization partners, including ITM Isotope Technologies Munich and Saugeen Ojibway Nation. The company has also explored additional isotope-production systems at the site. Bruce Power has considered expansion outside Ontario. Between 2008 and 2011 it investigated a possible nuclear station in northern Alberta, with a proposed capacity of up to 4,000 megawatts, but decided not to advance that proposal. Today, its identity remains closely tied to the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station, nuclear asset refurbishment, reliable provincial electricity supply, nuclear safety and the development of nuclear applications beyond conventional power generation.
History
Bruce Power was established in 2001 as a limited-liability partnership to operate the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station in Ontario. The station had originally been developed and operated within Ontario's public electricity system, but the restructuring of Ontario Hydro created successor organizations and enabled Ontario Power Generation to lease the Bruce site to a private operator. The original partnership was led by British Energy, with Cameco, the Power Workers' Union and the Society of Energy Professionals also participating. The company became the licensed operator in May 2001. Its operating assets were Bruce A and Bruce B, each containing four CANDU reactors. Bruce A's reactors had entered service between 1977 and 1979, while Bruce B's units were commissioned between 1984 and 1987. Following British Energy's financial problems in 2002, the partnership became wholly Canadian-owned in February 2003. Ownership later evolved through infrastructure-investor transactions and changes involving labour and employee investment entities. A central early challenge was the recovery of Bruce A's idle reactors. Unit 4 returned to the Ontario grid in October 2003, followed by Unit 3 in January 2004. In 2005, Bruce Power reached an agreement with the Ontario Power Authority and established a major investment program to refurbish and restart Units 1 and 2. The project involved extensive reactor, turbine, electrical and safety work. Unit 1 returned to the grid in September 2012 and Unit 2 followed in October. Their return brought the Bruce site back to its full eight-reactor configuration and made it one of the world's largest operating nuclear generating facilities by capacity. The company then moved from restart work to long-term asset management. In 2015, Bruce Power announced an agreement for a planned refurbishment of Units 3 through 8. The program was estimated at approximately $13 billion and was structured to extend the lives of six reactors while limiting the Ontario government's exposure to refurbishment cost overruns. Implementation began in 2016. The project has required sustained construction, engineering and manufacturing activity, with Bruce Power presenting it as both an electricity-security measure and a major source of employment and regional economic development. Bruce Power has also investigated business opportunities outside its core Ontario operations. It pursued a proposal for a nuclear generating station near Cardinal Lake in Alberta, potentially using two to four reactors and producing up to 4,000 megawatts. The proposal prompted public meetings, workshops and regulatory preparation, but the company decided in late 2011 not to continue advancing it. In the 2020s, the company expanded its interest in nuclear applications beyond grid electricity. It completed an isotope-production facility connected with lutetium-177, a radioisotope used in targeted medical treatments and related pharmaceutical supply chains. The initiative involved ITM Isotope Technologies Munich and Saugeen Ojibway Nation. Bruce Power continues to operate the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station as its core asset, while pursuing refurbishment, reliability, safety and isotope-production initiatives.
- 2022
Lutetium-177 facility completed
[1]The company announces completion of a facility supporting medical-isotope production.
- 2016
Six-reactor refurbishment begins
[1]Bruce Power commences the long-term refurbishment program covering Units 3 through 8.
- 2014
Cameco sells its Bruce Power interest
[1]Cameco agrees to sell its shareholding to Borealis Infrastructure, changing the partnership's ownership balance.
- 2012
Bruce A returns to full operation
[1]Units 1 and 2 return to commercial service, restoring the site's eight-reactor operating configuration.
- 2005
Units 1 and 2 refurbishment agreement
[1]Bruce Power launches a major investment program to refurbish and restart the two remaining Bruce A reactors.
- 2004
Bruce A Unit 3 restarts
[1]Unit 3 returns to Ontario service, following the restart of Unit 4.
- 2003
Ownership becomes Canadian
[1]Following British Energy's financial difficulties, the partnership transitions to wholly Canadian ownership; Bruce A Unit 4 also returns to the grid.
- 2001
Bruce Power is established
[1]A private partnership is formed to operate the Bruce Nuclear Generating Station under a lease from Ontario Power Generation.
Products and positioning
A major Canadian nuclear operator positioned around reliable, low-carbon electricity, long-term CANDU reactor operation, large-scale refurbishment and emerging medical-isotope production.
Nuclear electricity generation · 2001
Bruce Nuclear Generating Station electricity
Bruce Power's principal offering is electricity generated by eight CANDU reactors at Bruce A and Bruce B on Lake Huron. The station has approximately 6,400 megawatts of installed capacity and is a major supplier to Ontario's grid, normally accounting for close to 30 percent of provincial electricity consumption when the fleet is operating at full capacity.
Medical radioisotopes · 2022
Lutetium-177 isotope production
Bruce Power is developing isotope-production systems at the nuclear site and announced completion of a facility supporting lutetium-177 production in 2022. The isotope is used in the medical-radioisotope supply chain for targeted radiopharmaceutical applications. Processing and commercialization involve partners outside Bruce Power.
Brand decisions
2022
Develop isotope-production capabilityProduct launchBackground
The company sought to use its nuclear infrastructure for applications beyond electricity generation.
Action taken
Bruce Power announced completion of a facility supporting lutetium-177 production with external and Indigenous partners.
Aftermath
The initiative positioned the company in the medical-radioisotope supply chain while the nuclear station remained its core business.
2015
Approve refurbishment of Units 3 through 8Generation changeBackground
Bruce Power sought to preserve the output of six aging reactors and extend the operating life of the Bruce fleet.
Action taken
The company announced a multiyear refurbishment program covering Units 3 through 8, with implementation beginning in 2016.
Aftermath
The program became one of Canada's largest ongoing nuclear-infrastructure projects and supported extensive Ontario employment and supply-chain activity.
Estimated refurbishment cost. Approximately CAD 13 billion (2015 announcement)
2011
End Alberta nuclear-plant proposalStrategyBackground
Bruce Power had investigated a possible multi-reactor station near Cardinal Lake and conducted community and regulatory engagement.
Action taken
The company decided not to advance the proposed Alberta project.
Aftermath
Bruce Power's nuclear-generation operations remained concentrated in Ontario.
2005
Refurbish and restart Bruce A Units 1 and 2Generation changeBackground
Two Bruce A reactors had been out of service for years, limiting the site's contribution to Ontario's electricity system.
Action taken
Bruce Power agreed to a major investment program to refurbish the units and return them to commercial operation.
Aftermath
Both reactors returned to the grid in 2012, restoring the site's full eight-reactor configuration.
Investment program. CAD 4.25 billion announced program (2005)
Recent events
- Unconfirmed
Reported
Bruce Power launches Grey-Bruce-Huron Strong app[3]
Bruce Power, working with its partners, created the Grey-Bruce-Huron Strong app to connect and inform residents of Grey, Bruce and Huron counties during the COVID-19 crisis. The article describes the app as recently launched.
Sources3 sources
Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/bruce-power · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled