TRANSPORT, WATER - CANADA | SECTOR


tunnel, which will be constructed by a 6.97m-diameter Herrenknecht TBM - which recently arrived in Ontario. The TBM ‘Harriet Brooks’, named after Canada’s first nuclear physicist, arrived at the Port of Oshawa and transported to the Darlington nuclear site in 15 lorry loads. Assembly on site is to be performed in early 2026. The Government of Ontario is working with (OPG) on


the Can$20.9 billion (US$15.2 billion) project, which will deliver four grid-scale SMRs. The first facility, which will also be North America’s first commercial, grid-scale SMR, is planned to be operational by 2030. Construction work on the Darlington New Nuclear


Project (DNNP) began in Q3-2022, with the installation of utilities, including fire lines, water lines, sanitary sewer lines, and network cabling. Construction on a few important buildings, including the on-site fabrication building, is also under way. The four SMRs are designed to meet Ontario’s electricity


demands, which are rising for the first time since 2005. The Independent Electricity System Operator has forecast that the province could need to more than double its electricity generation in less than 30 years. Nuclear power currently provides about 50% of


Ontario’s electricity supply. “A fleet of SMRs at the Darlington New Nuclear Site is


key to meeting growing electricity demands and net zero goals,” said Ken Hartwick, President and CEO of OPG. “OPG has proven its large nuclear project expertise


through the on-time, on budget Darlington Refurbishment project. By taking a similar approach to building a fleet of SMRs, we will deliver cost and schedule savings, and power 1.2 million homes from this site by the mid-2030s.”


MONTRÉAL - BLUE LINE METRO The Blue Line Extension project is a key development project in the east end of Montréal. The 6km-long metro extension will add five stations east of Saint- Michel station, bringing the Blue Line into Anjou. The extension project is a collaboration between five partner


organisations: the Ministère des Transports et de la Mobilité durable; the Autorité Régionale du Transport Métropolitain; the City of Montréal; the Société Québécoise des Infrastructures; and, the Société de Transport de Montréal. The TBM that will dig the metro’s Blue Line extension recently arrived in the city. The 9.7m-diameter Herrenknecht machine –which will


be the largest TBM ever used in the province of Quebec – is to build a 4.6km-long tunnel to Anjou, a first in the Montreal metro system. The TBM is scheduled to be launched in Q2-2026. Components were transported from the Port of


Montreal to the launch site, located at the future Vertières metro station. The shipments were undertaken in a series of mainly night-time operations. Key vertical excavations have been completed at both Vertières station and Madeleine-Parent station in preparation for the TBM assembly and launch. At Vertières, 74,000m3 of soil and rock were removed to build the 26m-deep shaft; at the future Madeleine-Parent station 63,000m3 of rock was excavated for construction of a 29m-deep shaft. Excavation work is also planned or underway for


the construction of seven auxiliary buildings, the future Anjou underground garage, and several operational infrastructures. This means that more than 15 major projects will be carried out simultaneously. The stations on the Blue Line extension are scheduled to


come into service in 2031. “For the past year, work on the Blue Line extension has


been moving forward on schedule, and tangible progress has been made,” said Maha Clour, head of the Blue Line Project Office. “At the future Vertières station, horizontal excavation


has already begun, with our teams now digging a portion of the tunnel eastward to accommodate the tunnel boring machine. Digging is also under way on the westbound tunnel toward Saint-Michel station.” The Blue Line Project Office will invite the public to


name the TBM.


Opposite:


Preparations push ahead to bore cooling tunnel for Darlington nuclear power plant project


Below:


Site works get ready for Montréal’s metro’s Blue Line Extension project


January 2026 | 29


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