Darlington nuclear power plant 1
Gross capacity
934MW
Darlington nuclear power plant 1 is a pressurised heavy water reactor unit at Darlington nuclear power plant in Canada rated at 934 MW gross. It is operating. Commercial operation began 14 Nov 1992.
Specification
| Reactor type | Pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR) |
|---|---|
| Model | CANDU 850 |
| Size class | Large |
| Coolant | Heavy water |
| Moderator | Heavy water |
| Gross capacity | 934MW |
| Net capacity (reference) | 878MW |
| Net capacity (design) | 881MW |
| Thermal output | 2,776MWt |
| Typical enrichment | Natural uranium, 0.71% U-235 |
Ownership & location
| Site | Darlington nuclear power plant |
|---|---|
| Unit | 1 |
| Country | Canada |
| Owner | Ontario Power Generation Inc100% |
| Operator | Ontario Power Generation |
| Coordinates | 43.8697, -78.7239 |
Fuel chain for this unit
Fuel form
Natural uranium dioxide bundles
Enrichment
Natural uranium, 0.71% U-235 no enrichment required
Who makes this assembly
- BWX Technologies CANDU fuel bundles, natural uranium
- Cameco Corporation CANDU fuel bundles, natural uranium
- China North Nuclear Fuel Company CANDU fuel bundles
- KEPCO Nuclear Fuel CANDU fuel bundles
- Nuclear Power Corporation of India PHWR fuel bundles, natural uranium
Upstream
This unit runs on natural uranium, so its fuel chain has no enrichment step at all: mine → mill → conversion → fabrication. That is the shortest fuel chain of any commercial reactor type, and it makes the operator independent of the four organisations that control enrichment worldwide.
Fabricator capability is recorded against reactor type and model line, not against named units —
utilities do not publish fuel contracts. See the fuel chain.
Timeline
- 1 Apr 1982Construction start
- 29 Oct 1990First criticality
- 19 Dec 1990Grid connection
- 14 Nov 1992Commercial operation
Other units at Darlington nuclear power plant
| Unit | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|
| Darlington nuclear power plant 2 | 934 | |
| Darlington nuclear power plant 3 | 934 | |
| Darlington nuclear power plant 4 | 934 | |
| Darlington nuclear power plant 5 | Cancelled | 1,200 |
| Darlington nuclear power plant 6 | Cancelled | 1,200 |
Other CANDU 850 units
4 units worldwide share this model designation.
| Unit | Country | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Darlington nuclear power plant 2 | Canada | 934 | |
| Darlington nuclear power plant 3 | Canada | 934 | |
| Darlington nuclear power plant 4 | Canada | 934 |
Sources
- Global Nuclear Power Tracker, Global Energy Monitor, August 2026 release — CC BY 4.0 · retrieved 2026-09-06 · this unit last researched by GEM on 2024-05-09
- GEM.wiki entry (further reading) — CC BY-SA 4.0 — linked, not quoted