On Wednesday, the Ontario government announced that GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy (GVH) and Montreal-based Velan Inc . signed a partnership agreement to explore opportunities to deploy nuclear component s for small modular reactor (SMR) projects in Europe . GVH, a provider of advanced reactors , fuel and nuclear services, was created in an alliance between United States multinational conglomerate General Electric and Japan’s Hitachi Ltd. “With more than $600 billion in global SMR investment expected in the decades ahead, our government is firing up the Ontario supply chain helping create good-paying jobs for Canadians,” said Stephen Lecce, Ontario minister of energy and mines, in a press release about the announcement. Velan Inc., a leading manufacturer of industrial valves, plans to build a new manufacturing facility in Durham Region in the eastern end of the Greater Toronto Area to support SMR technologies, according to the announcement. This facility will be responsible for the manufacturing of reactor integral isolation valves (RIIVs) and containment isolation valves (CIVs), which are pieces of safety equipment for SMRs. The government expects each new reactor built to bring up to $70 million worth of new investment into Ontario. SMRs are a class of nuclear power reactors that have a power capacity of up to 300 megawatts per unit, which is about a third of the size of a full nuclear reactor used for power generation, according to Laurent Karim Béland, an associate professor of mechanical and materials engineering at Queen’s University. Béland called the partnership between Velan and GVH “a win-win relationship,” as Ontario has already built an expertise and industrial base for this technology, while working with regulators. This is particularly important for nuclear supply chains, which come with plenty of regulatory requirements, he said, adding that European reactors have often run into regulatory issues with their supply chains. This can cause the risk of supply and project delays, he said. Ontario agency pursuing creative financing plans in bid to jumpstart projectsErin O'Toole: The future for nuclear is bright, but only if we learn lessons of the past “If it works, that’s going to be extraordinary, because you’re going to get clients, both nationally and internationally, for something that’s been proven to be buildable at a reasonable cost,” he said. “I think that this announcement is part of the de-risking that can nudge us towards success.” GVH previously announced in October 2024 that it would be working with Velan to manufacture valves for North America’s first small modular reactor initiative at Ontario Power Generation Inc.’s Darlington site. The SMR units at the Darlington site are anticipated to contribute about $38.5 billion to Canada’s gross domestic product over the next 65 years, with 80 per cent of project spending flowing to Ontario companies, according to Ontario Power Generation, citing Signal49 Research (formerly the Conference Board of Canada) figures. “Building on our experience supporting the Darlington New Nuclear Project backed by more than seven decades of nuclear expertise, Velan is uniquely positioned to support GE Vernova Hitachi as a partner of choice in enabling future BWRX-300 deployments in Europe,” said Laurent Pefferkorn, Velan’s executive vice-president, global sales, in the press release. • Email: slouis@postmedia.com