Decouple - Latest News and Information
In this episode, host Chris interviews Joe Saint-Julian, President of Nuclear at Atkins Realis, to explore the current state and future prospects of Canada’s CANDU nuclear technology. Joe outlines Atkins Realis’s role as the OEM for CANDU, its recent contracts to build EC6 reactors in Romania, and the development of the next‑generation Monarch plant slated for Ontario, which mirrors the Darlington four‑pack design. He also reflects on the unique Canadian engineering heritage behind CANDU, its competitive economics, and why the technology has remained under‑promoted internationally. The conversation highlights both domestic revival plans and export opportunities as nuclear gains renewed relevance in net‑zero strategies.
In this episode, host decouple talks with nuclear fuel expert Michael Seeley about the unique nature of nuclear fuel, its manufacturing, and the evolution of fuel reliability. They explain how uranium dioxide pellets and zirconium cladding work together to contain...
In this episode, Chris Keefer interviews Ken Petrunik, a veteran of Canada’s nuclear golden age who led the construction of large CANDU reactors—including the Qinshan Phase III project in China—delivered ahead of schedule and under budget under a fixed‑price EPC contract....
In this episode of Decouple, the hosts dissect the European Pressurised Reactor (EPR), showing how its over‑engineered safety philosophy—extreme redundancy and conservative margins—clashed with Western construction capacity, supply‑chain readiness, and project‑management culture, leading to massive delays and cost overruns. They...
