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round up
NEW BUILD RUSSIA’S JSC ESKM subsidiary, AK Corporation, has shipped four plate heat exchangers for unit 1 of the El-Dabaa NPP under construction in Egypt. This is part of a contract with AK ESKM for the supply of heat exchange equipment for El Dabaa units 1-4. Each heat exchanger (safety class 2) weighs 84 tonnes.
THE AKKUYU NPP being built in Türkiye is to have an automatic water control system that will be discharged to the Mediterranean Sea after cooling the turbine condensers. This will reflect the changed requirements of Turkish legislation and make the project more environmentally friendly.
PLANT OPERATION TOKYO ELECTRIC POWER Co Holdings (Tepco) has begun loading a second reactor with fuel at its Kashiwazaki- Kariwa NPP in Niigata Prefecture. The work to load unit 6 began after the Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA) gave its approval. Once the necessary inspections are completed, unit 6 can technically be restarted anytime. However, Tepco still needs to obtain local community consent.
THE FRENCH NUCLEAR Safety & Radiation Protection Authority (ASNR) has found “hints” of stress-corrosion at unit 2 of EDF’s Civaux NPP. The phenomenon has been observed on pipes that have already been repaired. EDF had to close some of its fleet between 2022 and 2023 due to stress corrosion problems found in the pipes of safety systems at multiple reactors resulting a 34% reduction in output and costly repairs.
RUSSIA’S FEDERAL SERVICE for Ecological, Technological & Nuclear Supervision (Rostekhnadzor) has issued a licence allowing unit 2 at the Smolensk NPP to operate for an additional 5-five years. Rostekhnadzor confirmed the unit’s compliance with all modern standards and requirements. This will give the unit a total operating life of at least 45 years compared with its design life of 30 years.
EQUIPMENT US-BASED NAC International has received approval from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for its patented OPTIMUS-L packaging system to transport high activity radioactive sources. This enhances the capabilities of NAC’s OPTIMUS systems, which are fabricated and licensed to transport a range of radioactive materials from HALEU (high assay low-enriched uranium) fuel to used fuel from nuclear power plants.
Kazakhstan’s first NPP Rosatom to build
Above: The Novovoronezh II nuclear power plant was the first deployment of the VVER- 1200, a design now destined for Kazakhstan
The Atomic Energy Agency of Kazakhstan has selected Rosatom as general contractor for the construction of Kazakhstan’s first NPP. The plant will be built near the village of Ulken on Lake Balkhash, where a nuclear power plant was planned during the Soviet era. The decision to build the plant was made following a national referendum held in October 2024. The construction of the station was supported by 71.12% of those who voted on a 63.66% turnout. In April, Kazakhstan finalised the tender
process and shortlisted technology suppliers. According to the Atomic Energy Agency (AEA), the shortlist includes Rosatom offering a VVER-1200 reactor; Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) offering its APR1400 and APR1000 reactors; France’s EDF offering its EPR1200, and the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) offering its HPR1000 (Hualong One). “The most optimal and profitable proposals
for the construction of a nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan were received from the Russian company Rosatom. These were followed by proposals from the Chinese company China National Nuclear Corporation. The proposals from the French company Électricité de France and the Korean company Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power were ranked third,” said a statement from the Kazakh Atomic Energy Agency (KAEA). Kazakh authorities said that the three companies would be included in the Rosatom-led consortium but did not provide details. Kazakh media cited “observers” as saying the
idea of the consortium is a way for authorities to maintain good relations with all the countries involved but that it is most likely that Rosatom will end up building the plant by itself. The companies shortlisted submitted
a comprehensive package of materials on technical and commercial proposals, which included data on the estimated cost of construction, the implementation timeline, financing models, approaches to localising equipment and construction work, proposals for training and developing scientific and
6 | July 2025 |
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educational potential, opportunities for cooperation in the nuclear fuel cycle, and social commitments. The applications were evaluated based on a methodology developed with the participation of the French engineering company Assystem. The decision on the winner was made by the Interdepartmental Commission for the Development of the Nuclear Industry. “We welcome Kazakhstan’s decision to begin the construction of a nuclear power plant, Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev said in a Telegram post. “The result will be the construction of a nuclear plant based on the most advanced and efficient project in the world, based on Russian technologies. The VVER-1200 generation 3+ reactors combine time-tested engineering solutions with the latest active and passive protection systems, which are designed in strict accordance with international safety standards.” He added that VVER-1200 reactors are already operating in Russia and abroad — four units in Russia and two units in Belarus, and Russian partners in Hungary, Egypt, Turkey, Bangladesh, and China have also chosen this technology. The two-unit project is estimated to cost
$15bn. According to Rosatom, the issue of attracting state-funded export financing from Russia has been initiated. The Kazakhstan AEA will continue working with foreign partners to form a consortium for the construction. KAEA Chairman Almasadam Satkaliyev said it would take 2-3 years to design the plant and construction would take 8-10 years when Kazakhstan will become the owner of the plant. “The Republic of Kazakhstan will be the owner, operator, and producer of uranium raw materials, as well as the owner of all technological processes at the future nuclear power plant,” according to the KAEA. Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev
has sought to keep good relations with Russia and China, both of which border the country. The announcement naming Rosatom as winner of the tender came a few days before Chinese leader Xi Jinping was due to visit Kazakhstan for a “China-Central Asia” summit. However, Satkaliyev also announced that
work was already underway to prepare for construction of a second NPP with China’s assistance. “Objectively, China and Russia had the strongest proposals,” he said. “We are planning to sign a separate general agreement with the People’s Republic of China on cooperation in the nuclear industry. We want to see Chinese technologies in Kazakhstan for the construction of another plant. Objectively, there are not many countries in the world that can handle the entire nuclear cycle on their own.” ■
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