Canadian Nuclear Laboratories has won an $8.5 million federal government
contract to refuel the low power reactor at Royal Military College in Kingston.
Nicknamed SLOWPOKE-2, the reactor produces neutrons for scientific research.
The Defence Department also uses it to train rapid response teams for
environmental and nuclear emergencies.
CNL will remove the old reactor core and fit it with a new one made at its
Chalk River Lab. It’s estimated the project will take almost three years to complete
and nearly double the life span of the 34 year old reactor.
CNL says SLOWPOKE-2 was activated in 1985. It’s been an essential tool for
educating RMC students, military officers, faculty, and scholars. Eight SLOWPOKE
reactors have been supplied by CNL to universities and research centres across Canada
and in Jamaica. It is the only reactor in the world considered safe enough to be licensed
for unattended operation.
