NEWS |
round up
RADWASTE A POSITION PAPER by the UK Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) looks at the development of small modular reactors and advanced modular reactors and the implications for management of high level wastes and used fuel. The paper provides recommendations to the UK Government, Great British Nuclear (GBN) and Nuclear Waste Services (NWS – part pf the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority) and regulators with respect to SMR and AMR deployment.
INSTALLATION HAS BEGUN of a new electric furnace – EP 250/6 – at Russia’s Mayak production association in Ozersk. This is part of a major upgrade of Mayak’s technology for high-level waste processing involving vitrification. Its previous electric - EP-500/5 - was closed in 2020 after four years of operation during which 141m Curies of activity contained in liquid solutions obtained from used fuel was vitrified.
D&D
NUVIA, A SUBSIDIARY of France-based Vinci Construction, has been awarded a contract by Swedish energy company Vattenfall to dismantle units 1&2 of Sweden’s Ringhals NPP. Nuvia will be responsible for dismantling, controlling and sorting all materials, including radioactive materials, present inside the reactor buildings. The work is expected to take place between 2025 and 2031.
ADVANCED REACTORS US-BASED TERRAPOWER has selected five suppliers to support its Natrium Reactor Demonstration Project in Kemmerer, Wyoming. Terrapower said: “Upon completion, the Natrium plant will be a full commercial operating plant and will bring to market clean, reliable, stable baseload energy and flexible energy storage, as well as long-term jobs to energy producing communities.” The TerraPower/GE-Hitachi Natrium technology features a 345 MWe sodium-cooled fast reactor with a molten salt-based energy storage system.
FRANCE-BASED NAAREA (Nuclear Abundant Affordable Resourceful Energy for All) and Netherlands-based Thorizon have signed a strategic partnership agreement to advance the development of molten salt reactors in Europe. The companies both use modularity in their designs, NAAREA through modular manufacturing, Thorizon through a modular core made of molten salt cartridges produced offsite.
According to the original tender, in October
2023 ČEZ subsidiary, Elektrárna Dukovany II (EDU II), accepted bids from the three companies for a binding offer for a new fifth unit at the Dukovany NPP as well as non-binding offers for three more reactors. EDU II was to evaluate the bids and report to the government in early in 2024 with the aim of finalising contracts within a year, for construction to start in 2029 and trial operation in 2036. EDF proposed its EPR1200 reactor, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power its APR1000 and Westinghouse its AP1000. All three companies agreed to work with Czech suppliers if selected. The tender will now be expanded to binding offers for units 5&6 at Dukovany and units 3&4 at Temelin NPP. EDU II will report on the offers to the government by the end of May for a final decision by the end of June. Four VVER-440 units are currently in
operation at Dukovany, which began operating between 1985 and 1987. Two VVER-1000 units are in operation at Temelín, which began operation in 2000 and 2002. The Dukovany units will be decommissioned no later than 2045-2047. According to a lengthy briefing on the
government website, making the offers binding is important “to achieve the best possible conditions for the Czech Republic and the highest possible level of security regarding the price of construction of additional units”. This step “will also ensure greater transparency”. As to why Westinghouse was not included in the new tender, the government noted that discussions with Westinghouse had been ongoing for almost five years and “we are very sorry about this fact”. However, “Westinghouse did not meet the key requirements of the tender. Above all, its offer is not binding, which makes it impossible to assess the offer. And then the subject responsible for the quality of the work is not clearly identified.” The briefing added: “At the same time, no one is eliminated and the tender is not completed until we have signed an EPC contract for the supply and construction of a new unit.” The government also cited the dispute between KHNP and Westinghouse, which ČEZ says it considers to be a risk. In September 2023, Westinghouse decided to continue a legal battle against South Korean firms despite a US court dismissing its lawsuit. The litigation was a move by Westinghouse to prevent Korean companies from transferring technical information on reactor designs, which it claims have been licensed by it, to Poland and other countries, under a US export control regulation. Westinghouse insists that the Korean companies using its technologies need to obtain US government approval before export to a third country. “We are monitoring the development of the dispute,” noted the Czech government. At a follow-up press conference ČEZ CEO
Daniel Beneš said: “Our goal is to get a turnkey delivery with clear guarantees, with a clear price, with clear deadlines, with clear sanctions if those deadlines are not met, and with clear parameters”.
10 | March 2024 |
www.neimagazine.com
Belgium EC approves melting furnace The European Commission (EC) has approved development by the Belgian Research Centre (SCK-CEN) and the Liège-based Centre for Metallurgical Research (CRM) of an advanced smelter for metal from dismantled NPPs. SCK- CEN said the furnace will encourage the creation of a circular economy in nuclear dismantling, by enabling more metal to be re-used than is currently possible using established smelting technologies. The Belgian government in June 2023
allocated €13.5m ($14.5m) under the Belgian Recovery & Resilience Plan to the SMELD (State- of-the-art Metal Melting Limiting waste during D&D) project being developed by SCK CEN and CRM. The project partners intend to complete the work to construct the furnace by 2026. SMELD aims to develop a facility that will
enable larger quantities of metal emanating from dismantling to be recycled. It focuses on material that is too radioactive to be recycled immediately, but not radioactive enough to be disposed of as radioactive waste. CRM CEO Joeri Neutjens said: “That particular category actually accounts for considerable volumes. We believe that by putting in place the right technologies and installations, we will be able to give that metal a second life.” Thomas Dermine, Secretary of State for
Recovery & Strategic Investments, said: “The SMELD project illustrates the targeted allocation of resources to promote a circular economy in dismantling, demonstrating that with innovative approaches, we can reduce the ecological impact of nuclear dismantling. It is a tangible result of our commitment to sustainability and technological advancement.” Guido Mulier, a dismantling expert at SCK
CEN noted that more than 70 nuclear reactors have already closed down in Europe and it is estimated that dozens more will follow in the coming years. “It therefore won’t be long before they fall due for dismantling. Recycling and re- using the maximum quantity of materials makes it possible to reduce the ecological footprint of dismantling.” The intention is that SMELD will lead to an
upgraded form of the technology for large- scale melting plants. By capturing most of the radioisotopes during melting and separating them from the metal, existing plants are already bringing about a dramatic reduction in the quantity of radioactive waste. Nevertheless, some radioisotopes are difficult to capture using the techniques currently available. “We – literally – believe that still more can be got out of the process and have made it our target to ensure that the new melting furnace is more effective at isolating those residual radioisotopes as well. Larger quantities of metal can then be recycled and re-used,” Neutjens noted. The partners said this was their aim “but we
must first await the results of our fundamental research and our feasibility study”.
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