Alward awaits Point Lepreau delay information

New Brunswick Premier David Alward is as in the dark as everybody else about when the Point Lepreau nuclear plant will be running again.

Just hours before he was sworn in Tuesday as the province's new leader, Alward said he hadn't yet learned how long it will take for Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. to remove and reinstall all 380 calandria tubes as part of the $1.4-billion refurbishment of the plant.

The calandria tubes are made to house smaller nuclear pressure tubes, which in turn contain radioactive nuclear fuel bundles.

They were the first major piece of equipment to be installed in the reactor when the refurbishment started, but many of the tubes flunked air tightness tests.

N.B. Power announced Friday that the federal crown corporation had informed them of the further delay in the project, but that they did not have specific details from AECL about how it would impact the overall timeline, which is already more than a year behind schedule.

N.B. Power said it expected to learn more some time this week.

The most optimistic recently stated completion date was February 2012, but that was before this latest announcement. Alward says he's waiting to find out what the newest delay means.

Alward wants to meet with officials

"I don't have that information at this point in time, and I certainly do look forward to sitting down with officials to fully understand what the implication will be in terms of any time extension to finishing the project," he said.

Alward has promised to freeze power rates for three years, but that promise was based in part on the expectation that project would be finished in February 2012.

The refurbishment began March 28, 2008, and it's been estimated that NB Power will have to pay $1 million a day to purchase replacement power while the reactor is not in service.