Cameco Corporation plans to reopen its Port Hope facility in the next few days, after doing major repairs to the leaking uranium hexafluoride (UF6) plant, the company said this week.
Cameco said it has resolved the issue of underground leaking with a combination of groundwater control measures, repairs and improvements to the plant.
The company provided the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC) with reports on its actions, and received word on Sept. 12 that the commission had accepted its plan to restart the plant.
Cameco discovered in July 2007 that material from the plant had leached into soil and groundwater. Operations were suspended to investigate and fix the leak.
"Since the plant has been shut down for over a year, we have been following a cautious, thorough approach to restart in order to ensure it happens properly and safely," said Andy Oliver, vice-president of Cameco's fuel services division.
Oliver also said a third-party risk assessment has shown that the contaminant levels in the soil and groundwater do not pose a threat to human health or the environment.
"We have carried out a broad series of corrective actions and other control and preventative measures inside and outside the plant to resolve the issue and to ensure leaks do not occur in the future," Oliver said. "Cameco has learned a lot from the experience and will apply those lessons to other areas of its Port Hope operations and right across the company."
However, Port Hope will open at reduced capacity, due to a disagreement over the supply of hydrofluoric acid, an ingredient required to produce UF6.
Cameco has enough hydrofluoric acid for about a month of production. Its sole supplier of the acid has terminated its long-term contract with Cameco, and has offered to provide it at a higher price.
Cameco says it is working on resolving the issue and investigating other supply sources.
Remediation costs will come in between $50-$55 million Cdn., with $20 million expensed and the rest capitalized.
Port Hope is one of three UF6 plants in the western world. Making UF6 is a complex process that transforms yellowcake into a a compound that is ultimately enriched for use in nuclear reactors.