Gentilly nuclear power plant 2
Retired Canada
Gross capacity
675MW
Gentilly nuclear power plant 2 is a pressurised heavy water reactor unit at Gentilly nuclear power plant in Canada rated at 675 MW gross. It is retired. Commercial operation began 1 Oct 1983.
Specification
| Reactor type | Pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR) |
|---|---|
| Model | CANDU 6 |
| Size class | Large |
| Coolant | Heavy water |
| Moderator | Heavy water |
| Gross capacity | 675MW |
| Net capacity (reference) | 635MW |
| Net capacity (design) | 645MW |
| Thermal output | 2,156MWt |
| Typical enrichment | Natural uranium, 0.71% U-235 |
Ownership & location
| Site | Gentilly nuclear power plant |
|---|---|
| Unit | 2 |
| Country | Canada |
| Owner | Hydro Quebec100% |
| Operator | Hydro Quebec |
| Coordinates | 46.3955, -72.3556 |
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utilities do not publish fuel contracts.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 1974Construction start
- 11 Sep 1982First criticality
- 4 Dec 1982Grid connection
- 1 Oct 1983Commercial operation
- 28 Dec 2012Permanent shutdown
Other units at Gentilly nuclear power plant
| Unit | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|
| Gentilly nuclear power plant 1 | Retired | 266 |
Other CANDU 6 units
14 units worldwide share this model designation.
| Unit | Country | Status | Gross MW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 1 | Romania | 706 | |
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 2 | Romania | 705 | |
| Embalse nuclear power plant | Argentina | 656 | |
| Point Lepreau nuclear power plant 1 | Canada | 705 | |
| Qinshan nuclear power plant 3-1 | China | 728 | |
| Qinshan nuclear power plant 3-2 | China | 728 | |
| Wolsong nuclear power plant 2 | South Korea | 599 | |
| Wolsong nuclear power plant 3 | South Korea | 624 | |
| Wolsong nuclear power plant 4 | South Korea | 589 | |
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 3 | Romania | Pre-construction | 720 |
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 4 | Romania | Pre-construction | 720 |
| Cernavodă nuclear power plant 5 | Romania | Cancelled | 706 |
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 2024-05-08
- GEM.wiki entry (further reading) — CC BY-SA 4.0 — linked, not quoted