About

The nuclear reactor power upgrade refit technology is being developed by Suretech Development Limited, a company founded in 1998 as a nuclear and rail technology consultancy. Suretech Development Limited operated as a consultancy until 2018, after which the company focused entirely on reactor refit technology development. Suretech Development Limited was founded by its current president, Roger Lounsbury. Prior to founding Suretech Development Limited, Roger Lounsbury worked at Atomic Energy of Canada Limited’s (AECL’s) Chalk River Laboratories on projects such as the Blowdown Test Facility for severe fuel damage research, the MAPLE-X10 reactor, NRU research reactor projects and waste management projects.

During the consulting phase of Suretech Development Limited, Roger Lounsbury assembled a team of highly experienced sub-consultants in fields such as nuclear operations, safety, research, project management and human factors. Typical clients included AECL’s research Laboratories, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and BWXT Technical Services Group Inc. (now BWX Technologies Inc.). Consultancy projects included NRU research reactor upgrades project management, nuclear research facility safety report preparation, safety report review guides for the CNSC and safety review and system safety and reliability of export of Shinkansen high speed rail to Taiwan.

Initial work started on the reactor refit technology in 2009 when the Suretech team realized that a large power upgrade was more practical in Pressurized Heavy Water Reactors PHWRs than light water reactors (LWRs). The reason for this is that LWRs have large pressure vessels that impose practical and licensing constraints on significant pressure increases. PHWRs, such as CANDU, have pressure tubes that can accommodate the higher pressures needed for large power increases.

Consulting Client Facilities

AECL’s Chalk River Laboratories