NUCLEAR NEWCOMERS | SPECIAL REPORT
AECL’s Candu-6, the Areva-Mitsubishi Atmea 1 and a KHNP design. In 2009 JAEC contracted Tractabel Engineering for a siting study at Al Amra in Al Mafraq province and signed WorleyParsons for the pre-construction phase of a two-unit plant. In 2013 JAEC decided on two AES-92 units on a BOO basis with Rosatom Overseas. However, in 2018 the project was cancelled on the grounds of cost in favour of SMRs, and a new agreement was signed with Rosatom Overseas. A MOU was also signed with Rolls-Royce for an SMR feasibility study, and another with X-energy on its 76MWe Xe-100 HTGR. Talks were held with CNNC in 2018 on the possible construction of a 220MWe HTR-PM reactor for operation from 2025, and in 2019 an agreement was signed with US NuScale.
KAZAKHSTAN has been discussing nuclear power with Russia since 2006. In 2016 Kazakhstan had considered five possible sites – Ulken near Lake Balkhash in the south; Kurchatov, in the northeast; Taraz, near the border with Kyrgyzstan; and Aktau, on the shore of the Caspian Sea. In 2021 Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev said Kazakhstan needed a NPP and advocated further investigation and the Energy Ministry began to study possible sites.
KENYA began considering nuclear power in 2010 and the Kenya Nuclear Electricity Board (KNEB) was set up in 2014. In 2015 and 2017 KNEB signed agreements with China General Nuclear Power (CGN) to investigate building a Hualong One reactor. Rosatom and Kepco also signed agreements with Kenya in 2016 on NPP construction. Kenya confirmed a target of 1000MWe online by 2025 and 4000MWe by 2033. In 2019, KNEB became the Nuclear Power and Energy Agency (NuPEA) and in 2020 deferred the timeline for an initial plant to 2035 and said SMRs would also be considered.
NIGERIA has a well-established nuclear infrastructure. Nigeria’s first research reactor, supplied by China, was commissioned in 2004. In 2009 the Nigerian Atomic Energy Commission (NEAC) set out a Strategic Plan, targeting 1000MWe of nuclear capacity by 2020, plus 4000MWe by 2030. In 2010, NEAC shortlisted four possible sites. Plans were revised in 2015 targeting first NPP grid connection by 2025 and increasing nuclear capacity to 4800MWe by 2035. In 2009 Russia signed an agreement with Nigeria for construction of a NPP and research reactor. In 2011 Rosatom and the NEAC finalised a draft intergovernmental agreement on the design, construction, operation and decommissioning of an NPP with three more plants planned at a total cost of $20 billion. In 2012 Rosatom and NAEC signed a MOU to prepare a programme including financing options and considering a BOO arrangement. In 2021, a reconstituted Russian-Nigerian Joint Coordination Committee (JCC) on National Atomic Energy was launched for cooperation in the design, construction and decommissioning of NPPs.
PHILIPPINES is considering a nuclear power programme, including possible revival of the 621MWe Westinghouse mothballed NPP Bataan project or constructing an SMR. A 2008 update of the national energy plan envisaged 600MWe of nuclear online in 2025, with further 600MWe increments in 2027, 2030 and 2034. The Philippine Energy Plan 2018-2040 included a Nuclear Power Programme Roadmap, targeting
the first NPP in 2027. In 2017 two nuclear cooperation agreements were signed with Rosatom, followed by another in 2019, to assess the feasibility of an SMR, floating or on land. In 2021 DOE identified 15 possible locations for a NPP and in February 2022 DOE was mandated to develop and implement a nuclear programme, including the possible revival of Bataan.
POLAND decided in 2005 that its first NPP should be operating soon after 2020. In 2009, the Council of Ministers called for construction of at least two plants. The government plan envisaged construction of the first unit in 2016-20 and successive units by 2030. Power utility PGE announced plans to build two 3000MWe NPPs. A nuclear power programme, approved by the government in 2011, was confirmed by PGE in 2012. A draft energy policy to 2040, adopted in 2021, targeted
halving coal use in favour of nuclear. Three NPP sites have been identified and the Energy Ministry plans to launch the first 1-1.5GWe reactor in 2035 and five more by 2043, for a total capacity of 6-9GWe. In 2021 a new state-owned company, Polish Nuclear Power Plants (Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe, PEJ), was set up to pursue investment. PEJ selected the coastal location of Lubiatowo-Kopalino in Pomerania for the first reactor. In 2021, the US Trade & Development Agency provided
a grant to support design studies by Westinghouse and Bechtel for a AP1000 reactor. EDF offered to build up to six 1650 MWe EPR units and KHNP indicated it would offer its APR-1400. In 2022 Bechtel and Westinghouse signed an MOU with GE Steam Power for joint pursuit of civil nuclear projects in Poland. Poland also plans to build a cogeneration 200-350MWt HTR for process heat and a 10MWt experimental HTR at Swierk. There is close cooperation with the Japan Atomic Energy Agency on HTRs and in 2022, US NuScale Power and Poland’s KGHM Polska Miedź agreed to initiate deployment of NuScale’s SMR technology.
SAUDI ARABIA set up the King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KA-CARE) in 2010 to advance alternative energies including nuclear. Plans included the construction of 16 reactors to generate about 20% of Saudi Arabia’s electricity and smaller reactors for desalination. In 2013, three sites were short-listed. Construction was expected to begin in 2016 to build 17GWe of nuclear capacity by 2032, U
Above: The mothballed Bataan nuclear power plant in the Philippines could finally be commissioned Photo credit: ABS/CBN Philippines
www.neimagazine.com | June 2022 | 25
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45
