POWER PLANT DESIGN | COVER STORY


Left: Akademik Lomonosov Source: Rosatom


Kyuchus is the biggest undeveloped gold field in Russia, so supplying its energy needs via diesel would be challenging, if not impossible. Rosatom reported another important milestone for the


Yakutia SMR project in August when it announced that its subsidiary Rusatom Overseas (responsible for international business) had been granted a licence by Russian nuclear regulator Rostekhnadzor allowing it to “build nuclear installations at nuclear power plants”, noting that the licence was obtained “within the framework” of the Yakutia SMR project.


With the aim of ensuring flexibility and fast decision making for this first-of-a-kind pilot facility, Rusatom Overseas is taking an expanded role in the Yakutia SMR project, acting as developer and builder. Nuclear utility Rosenergoatom (also part of Rosatom) is in the role of customer and will eventually be power plant operator. On 22 June 2021, public hearings were held in Yakutia.


Currently, the project developers are working on the environmental review, having already completed site surveys. An agreement paving the way for the project was signed


in December 2020 between Rosatom and the government of Sakha. This envisaged first-of-a-kind SMR construction in the north-east of Russia, with Yakutia confirming the off-take of up to 50MW of electricity and confirming its readiness to assist in siting of the plant. Two candidate sites are currently under consideration. The Yukutia SMR, in its role of pilot facility, would


consist of a single reactor, but a more typical configuration, potentially to be adopted for future projects, probably would consist of pairs of reactors. The current schedule for the Yakutia SMR envisages start


of construction in 2024, with completion in 2028. The Yakutia plant will employ Rosatom’s RITM-200N


pressurised water reactor technology, which builds on many years of operating experience (about 400 reactor years, going back to 1954) with small reactors employed in the Russian nuclear icebreaker fleet (designed by OKBM Afrikantov, another Rosatom subsidiary). In October 2020, icebreaker Arktika, equipped with two


RITM-200 reactors, went into service, while the Sibir and Ural icebreakers, each employing two RITM-200 reactors, are currently under construction, scheduled to enter service in 2021 and 2022. Two further icebreakers, Yakutia and Chukotka, also powered by twin RITM-200 reactors, are due for completion in 2025 and 2026. A direct antecedent of the RITM-200 was the KLT-40


marine reactor, used in icebreakers but also deployed in the Akademik Lomonosov, the world’s first, and, so far, only,


floating nuclear power plant. The Akademik Lomonosov, which has two KLT-40S reactors, started supplying electricity to the Chukotka grid in December 2019, was fully commissioned in May 2020, and in June 2020 supplied its first heat to Pevek city (Chukotka), with the expectation that by the end of 2021 it will be supplying heat to all districts of Pevek. It is the world’s northernmost nuclear power plant, and is enabling phase-out of the Chaunsk coal fired plant and the 4 x 12MWe Bilibino nuclear plant, in operation since the 1970s, designed to cope with -62°C, and thought to be the only nuclear plant in the world to be equipped with dry cooling. The RITM-200 represents a significant evolution from


the KLT-40, with an integral configuration and “Generation 3+” design features, combining active and passive safety features. Dimensions are reduced by 45% and mass by 35%, but unit power rating is increased from 38.5MWe to 55MWe, thermal capacity from about 150MWt to 190MWt. Other key features of the RITM-series SMR can be summarised as follows: refuelling cycle, 5-6 years; design life, 60 years; availability factor 90%; plant area (for a twin reactor plant), 15 acres; construction period 3-4 years. Floating nuclear power plants are considered to have an


important potential role in supplying heat and power to Russia’s northern and remote regions, which occupy over 50% of the country and contain the richest mineral reserves, but are not served by the “unified energy system”, which only covers about 15% of the country’s territory. Fuel (diesel) transport can account for about 80% of electricity prices in these remote areas. Following on from experience with Akademik Lomonosov,


an “optimised” floating nuclear power plant is under development, equipped with two RITM-200M reactors. This would have an installed capacity of 100MW,


compared with 77MW for Akademik Lomonosov, while at the same time vessel length is reduced by 28m and displacement by 4320t. Looking beyond the Yakutia project, Rosatom expects


to be able to commission land-based SMRs employing RITM reactors outside Russia from around 2029 onwards. According to Alexey Likhachev, Rosatom director general: “Rosatom always follows the principle: first we build in our own country and only then offer the technology to the market.” ■


Join us on 4 November for Nuclear Engineering International’s


virtual conference on Small and Advanced Reactors where Elena Pashina of Rusatom Overseas will be speaking. Free registration: Scan the QR code


www.neimagazine.com | November 2021 | 39


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