Russia’s AEM-Spetsstal (AEM-Special Steels) will produce blanks for RITM-200S small modular reactors to be used on floating NPPs.
AEM-Special Steels (part of Rosatom’s mechanical engineering division Atomenergomash) has started manufacturing forged blanks of various configurations (shells, elbows, bottoms, etc.) for RITM-200S reactor plants. These will be installed on floating NPPs to supply power for the Baimsk Mining & Metallurgical Plant in the Arctic.
A contract has already been signed for the supply of products for the first and second floating power units. The finished products will be sent to another Atomenergomash enterprise - ZiO-Podolsk JSC, where the production of RITM-200S reactor pressure vessels is already underway.
The development of the Arctic region is considered vital for the development of the Russian economy. Atomenergomash also manufactures equipment for the latest double-draft icebreakers. RITM-200 reactor plants for the lead new-generation icebreaker Arktika and serial nuclear-powered icebreakers Sibir, Ural and Yakutia have already been installed on the vessels.
Atomenergomash provides a complete production chain for the RITM-200, from the design and production of blanks to the manufacture and installation of equipment. JSC OKBM Afrikantov is designer and overall supplier.
RITM-200 is a fundamentally new reactor plant for the icebreaker fleet. It has an energy-efficient integral layout that ensures that the main equipment is placed directly inside the steam generating unit casing. As a result, it is two times lighter, one and a half times more compact and 25 MWe more powerful than the previously used KLT reactor plants. This also increases the ice breaking speed.
The service life of the reactors is 40 years. Their safety is ensured by a protective shell made of steel, water and concrete. The RITM-200 is refuelled once every seven years. Adapted versions have been developed for use in small floating NPPs (RITM-200S) and ground-based SMRs (RITM-200N).
Image: Shell for RITM-200S reactor (courtesy of AEM-Spetsstal)
