Westinghouse’ consortium krijgt EU-geld voor diversificatie aanbod kernbrandstof
Westinghouse Electric Company en acht Europese consortiumpartners hebben van de Europese Unie 2 miljoen euro gekregen voor het opzetten van een veilige toevoer van kernbrandstof naar kernreactoren van Russische makelij in de EU. Vijf EU-lidstaten (Bulgarije, Tsjechië, Finland, Hongarije en Slowakije) hebben samen achttien reactoren van Russische oorsprong in gebruik. Deze reactoren zijn op dit moment volledig afhankelijk van Russische producenten van kernbrandstof. De reactoren leveren 52 procent van de volledige elektriciteitsvoorraad van de betreffende landen. De EU-financiering is gericht op een diversificatie van kernbrandstofbronnen op de korte tot middellange termijn, geheel in overeenstemming met internationale standaarden voor nucleaire veiligheid. Kernenergie is goed voor 55 procent van alle elektriciteit die door koolstofarme opwekking wordt verkregen in de EU.
Westinghouse-Led Group Wins EU Backing to Diversify Nuclear Fuel Supply to VVER Reactors
Westinghouse Electric Company and eight European consortium partners today
announced that they have received 2 million euros ($2,240,400) in
funding from the European Union (EU) to establish the security of supply
of nuclear fuel for Russian-designed reactors in the EU. Five EU member
states (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary and Slovakia) are
operating a total of 18 such reactors, which are currently 100 percent
dependent on supply from Russian fuel manufacturers. These reactors
provide up to 52 percent of the electricity supply in the Member States
concerned. The EU funding is aimed at diversifying nuclear fuel sources
in the short- to medium-term, in full compliance with international
nuclear safety standards. Nuclear energy provides 55 percent of the EU’s
low-carbon electricity.
“The decision by the EU to fund this project is significant,” said Yves
Brachet, Westinghouse president, Europe, Middle East and Africa Region.
“It demonstrates that the EU is serious about taking measures to improve
its energy security through a diversification of its nuclear fuel
sources. Currently, all Russian reactors in the EU have had to rely on
Russian nuclear fuel. The project will help to strengthen and secure
European supply of this fuel,” said Brachet.
The EU funding comes from the Euratom Research and Training Programme,
which is part of Horizon 2020, the EU’s research and innovation program.
The project, known as ESSANUF (European Supply of Safe Nuclear Fuel),
focuses on licensing alternative nuclear fuel supplies for
Russian-designed pressurized water reactors (VVERs) operating in the EU.
Westinghouse will act as the coordinator for the project. Westinghouse’s
consortium partners are: VUJE,
ÚJV
Řež, Lappeenranta
University of Technology (LUT), National
Nuclear Laboratory (NNL), NucleoCon,
National
Science Center Kharkov Institute of Physics and Technology (NSC
KIPT), Institute
for Transuranium Elements of the Joint Research Centre of the European
Commission (JRC-ITU) and Enusa
Industrias Avanzadas (ENUSA).
Each partner brings leading expertise in their chosen fields:
Westinghouse (Sweden and United Kingdom), ENUSA (Spain) and NNL (United
Kingdom) have considerable experience in developing, licensing and
manufacturing Westinghouse VVER-440 fuel in combination with operating
experience at the Loviisa Nuclear Power Plant in Finland. VUJE
(Slovakia), ÚJV Řež (Czech Republic), LUT (Finland) and NSC KIPT
(Ukraine) have extensive knowledge with regard to safety analysis,
licensing and experience in working with the local authorities in their
respective countries. The JRC-ITU (EU) and NucleoCon (Slovakia) are
experts on the development and adaption of the TRANS-URANUS code which
is widely used and commonly available for fault analysis during the
licensing process of pressurized water reactors.
There are currently 131 nuclear power plants in the EU, over 60 percent
of which are based on Westinghouse technology (US or European in
design). Five Member States (Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Finland, Hungary
and Slovakia) operate Russian reactors (four VVER-1000 and 14 VVER-440
type reactors).
Westinghouse has previously supplied VVER-440 fuel from its fuel
fabrication facility in Preston, U.K., together with ENUSA, to Loviisa
(Finland) from 2001 to 2007 in annual fuel load quantities following a
successful fuel design and Lead Test Assembly (LTA) program. The fuel
operated flawlessly, meeting all regulatory requirements at the highest
safety levels. Since 2008, all fuel for the Loviisa nuclear power plant
has been supplied by Russia.
Westinghouse is a global nuclear fuel provider for pressurized water
reactors (PWRs), including Russian VVER reactors, as well as boiling
water reactors (BWRs) and advanced gas-cooled reactors (AGRs).
Westinghouse provides nuclear fuel to 143 plants globally, 65 of which
are in Europe, and has 10 nuclear fuel manufacturing locations around
the world, including two sites in Europe: Springfields Fuels in Preston,
U.K., and Westinghouse Electric Sweden in Västerås. Westinghouse is the
largest supplier of nuclear fuel in Europe and also the only other fuel
manufacturer for VVER-type reactors. In December 2014, Westinghouse and
Energoatom, Ukraine’s nuclear power plant operator, completed a contract
extension for its VVER-1000 reactors. The fuel will be delivered
from Westinghouse Electric Sweden.
Westinghouse Electric Company, a group company of Toshiba
Corporation (TKY:6502), is the world’s pioneering nuclear energy
company and is a leading supplier of nuclear plant products and
technologies to utilities throughout the world. Westinghouse supplied
the world’s first pressurized water reactor in 1957 in Shippingport,
Pa., U.S. Today, Westinghouse technology is the basis for approximately
one-half of the world’s operating nuclear plants, including more than 50
percent of those in Europe.
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