Durham’s energy sector profiled at UOIT meeting with Hon. Tracy MacCharles

OSHAWA, Ont. – The University of Ontario Institute of Technology (UOIT) was pleased to host the Hon. Tracy MacCharles, MPP for Pickering – Scarborough East, at a special meeting to profile the university’s involvement with the nuclear energy sector in the eastern Greater Toronto Area.

“Strengthening the province’s relationship with our nuclear industry partners is critical to the success of Ontario’s Long-Term Energy Plan,” said the Hon. Tracy MacCharles, MPP for Pickering – Scarborough East. “The University of Ontario Institute of Technology is helping the province meet its need for reliable, efficient and clean energy systems by training our next generation of professionals and through innovative research projects surrounding issues of nuclear safety.”   

MacCharles, who is Minister of Children and Youth Services, as well as Minister Responsible for Women’s Issues, met with UOIT President Tim McTiernan, senior executives from Ontario Power Generation (OPG), and a number of companies and organizations within the nuclear industry. Also in attendance was Corneliu Chisu, MP for Pickering – Scarborough East. UOIT’s Dr. Brent Lewis, Dean, Faculty of Energy Systems and Nuclear Science and Dr. Tarlochan Sidhu, Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science noted the important relationship between the university’s students, faculty and researchers in the regional, provincial and national energy sector.

“Researchers at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology are discovering ways to achieve secure and sustainable energy systems by leading change in energy production, conversion and efficiency,” said President Tim McTiernan. “Through purposeful research in this area, the university contributes to Canada’s efforts as a global leader in energy innovation, ensuring that environmentally responsible energy and transportation technologies are developed and in place for the future.”

The nuclear energy sector plays a significant role in the Durham Region economy. For example OPG states that, of the firms involved in building the recently opened Darlington Energy Complex, eight were from Durham, representing 15 per cent of the project’s workforce. In the coming years the repurposing of the Pickering nuclear facility will also create jobs in Durham Region.

UOIT conducts research in sustainable energy and helps to meet the sector’s growing demands for highly qualified personnel.

Students in the university’s Nuclear Engineering program learn in the state-of-the-art Nuclear Simulation Lab, which offers a high-tech computer and display system for the operation and simulation of nuclear power plants. They gain hands-on experience using OPG’s only off-site full scope virtual Candu 9 simulator. The faculty also develops software for advanced reactor designs.

UOIT researchers are also engaged in solar, geothermal, ‘smart-grid’, natural gas and hydrogen research in the university’s Clean Energy Research Laboratory, Energy Systems and Nuclear Science Research Centre and the Ontario Power Generation Engineering Building.

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