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round up
RADWASTE KAZAKHSTAN INTENDS TO dispose of radioactive waste from its planned NPPs at the former Soviet nuclear test site in Semipalatinsk, Deputy Chairman of the Atomic Energy Agency Gumar Sergazin told a briefing in Astana. He noted that the operation of two 1,200 MWe reactors, such as those under construction at Kazakhstan’s first NPP in the Almaty region, will produce approximately 50 cubic metres of radioactive waste a year.
A ROBOT SORTER of solid radioactive waste for fourth-generation energy complexes is undergoing pilot operation at Russia’s AA Bochvar Research Institute of Inorganic Materials (VNIINM). The robotic installation for sorting and certification of solid radioactive waste is being developed by the Central Research and Development Institute of Robotics & Technical Cybernetics in St Petersburg.
TEOLLISUUDEN VOIMA OYJ (TVO) and Rauman Biovoima Oy are launching a cooperation venture to make use of the waste, exempt from control, generated at the Olkiluoto NPP. The waste will be treated by Rauman Biovoima at their combined heat and power production plant. This marks the first time that NPP maintenance waste is recycled in Finland. The first pilot batch is planned to be transferred from Olkiluoto to Rauman Biovoima by the end of November.
SMRS CANADA’S AECON GROUP and Norway’s Norsk Kärnkraft have signed a three-year strategic cooperation agreement to advance the development of small modular reactors (SMRs) in Norway, with a particular focus on the GE Vernova Hitachi BWRX-300 reactor design.
US-BASED X-ENERGY Reactor Company has announced a Definitive Supply Agreement with Toyo Tanso USA, a subsidiary of Japan-based Toyo Tanso Co, to supply fine-grain graphite components for the first deployment of X-energy’s Xe-100 small modular reactor (SMR). Toyo Tanso has agreed to manufacture graphite core structural components for the four Xe-100 reactors proposed for Dow’s project at its UCC Seadrift Operations site.
ITALIAN ENGINEERING GROUP Maire SpA (formerly Maire Tecnimont SpA) and its 60% subsidiary NextChem (Sustainable Technology Solutions) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with EDF and its Nuward subsidiary. The MOU seeks to explore cooperation in the development and deployment of the Nuward small modular reactor programme.
of understanding (MOU) on civil nuclear cooperation, including small modular reactors (SMRs) and used fuel storage. The MOU foresees potential investments of up to $20bn. In addition, Hungary concluded a deal with
US-based Westinghouse to supply nuclear fuel for the Paks NPP. “We will introduce American technology in Hungary and create the legal framework for the construction of small modular reactors,” Orbán said, adding that the Hungarian parliament would amend the relevant laws. Péter Szijjártó signed the intergovernmental
nuclear energy cooperation agreement with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Szijjártó noted in a Foreign Ministry statement that, in recent years, huge factories have been built and are being built in Hungary, and more electricity is needed for their operation, which can only be ensured through nuclear energy. “Therefore, a key issue for Hungary’s energy security… is that we can increase the capacities related to nuclear energy. And in order to be able to increase nuclear capacities, more nuclear fuel elements are needed.” Hungary’s Magyar Villamos Művek (MVM)
Group, owner of the Paks NPP, meanwhile reported that it had signed a contract with Westinghouse Electric Company to diversify Hungary’s nuclear fuel supply. Westinghouse agreed to supply VVER fuel produced in Europe for the Paks NPP. Depending on the licensing processes, Westinghouse expects to deliver VVER-440 fuel to Hungary from 2028. The US Embassy in Budapest said the agreement is valued at around $114m. “Our agreement with Westinghouse is a clear
response to today’s challenges, which further strengthens the role of Hungary’s number one power plant in domestic energy supply,” said MVM Group CEO Károly Mátrai. “With this strategically important step, the operation of the Paks NPP becomes safer and more flexible.” The existing Paks NPP comprises four
VVER-440 power units launched between 1982 and 1987. Paks currently provides half of all generated and one third of the consumed electricity in Hungary. The Paks NPP is currently fuelled entirely with fuel from Russia’s TVEL. Westinghouse has only recently completed development of VVER- 440 fuel. The Paks II expansion project was launched in 2014 for two VVER-1200 reactors to be supplied by Rosatom.
Canada CFFC begins Unity-2 construction Canada-based Fusion Fuel Cycles (FFC) has begun construction of UNITY-2, the world’s first integrated tritium fuel cycle system test facility capable of full-loop operations. FFC is a joint venture between Japan’s
Kyoto Fusioneering (KF) and Canadian Nuclear Laboratories (CNL) established in 2024. This extended the Strategic Alliance formed between KF and CNL in September 2023, which aims to develop and deploy deuterium-tritium (D-T)
10 | December 2025 |
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fusion fuel cycle technologies. KF was spun out of Kyoto University as Japan’s first fusion start- up in 2019. The first project under this initiative was
UNITY-2, a fuel cycle test facility located at CNL’s Chalk River Laboratories, scheduled to be commissioned by the end of 2025 and fully operational by mid-2026. UNITY-2, a fusion test loop, is seen as complementary to KF’s UNITY-1 (formerly UNITY – Unique Integrated Testing Facility). While UNITY-1 focuses on the thermal cycle system to harness heat from the fusion core, UNITY-2 focuses on demonstrating the complete fuel cycle. Unity-2 will pioneer the full D-T fuel cycle
from fuel discharge to purification and supply, demonstrating efficient tritium processing technology in relevant conditions and at relevant rates reducing risks involved in developing a fusion pilot plant (FPP). It will address key risks in an FPP’s tritium processing plant by developing and demonstrating critical enabling technologies. According to KF, UNITY-2 will enable
continuous circulation of up to 30 grammes of tritium in a 24-hour operational cycle, with the ability to expand to 100 g under the existing building license. UNITY-2 is now entering the construction
phase at Chalk River, Ontario. Commissioning is scheduled for late 2026, at which point integrated testing will begin under controlled tritium environments.
Russian Federation China strengthens cooperation Russia and China will develop the construction of Russian designed NPPs in China, while the parties plan to actively use fast neutron reactors and closed nuclear fuel cycle technologies, Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev said during a trip to China. “We must move on to the next package of
bilateral cooperation, including, without a doubt, development of the construction of Russian design NPPs in China, and joint work on Generation IV nuclear energy. This means closing the fuel cycle and more active use of industrial fast neutron reactors,” he told reporters in Hangzhou. Earlier, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin and Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Li Qiang signed a joint communiqué. Russia and China will continue the construction of the Tianwan and Xudabao NPPs, the joint communiqué said. The communique emphasised that the
parties highly appreciate the results of Russian- Chinese cooperation in the energy sector, confirm their intention to continue to unlock its potential, expand a comprehensive energy partnership, and strengthen a comprehensive, broad-sectoral and deep-level structure of bilateral interaction in the energy sector. Moscow and Beijing agreed to support deepening cooperation in the electricity sector, to help strengthen interconnectedness.
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