Canada nuc plants

[Bruce Busby <bbusby@umich.edu>]

TORONTO (UPI) -- A major Canadian power utility says it
is temporarily laying up seven nuclear reactors and permanently shutting 
down another. 	Charles Farlinger, chairman of Ontario Hydro, told reporters today  
the decision came after a team of experts conducted an extensive 
evaluation study of the utility's production facilities. 
He says the utility will raise the production levels of two fossil  
generating stations to replace the electricity production from the 
reactors being shut down. Tuesday, Ontario Hydro's chief executive officer Allan Kupcis  
announced his resignation, saying he was taking responsibility for the 
utility's poor performance record. 
	Farlinger says the cost of upgrading the nuclear facilities and  
``replacing uranium with expensive fossil fuels'' could be between $5 
billion and $8 billion (U.S. $3.6 and $5.7 billion) in 1997-2001. 
Write-offs of other assets could cost another $2 billion (U.S. $1.4
billion).  He says the utility will temporarily lay up four nuclear reactors
at  Pickering, Ontario, and three at Bruce, Ontario, while a heavy water 
plant at Bruce will be permanently closed.