The reactor pressure vessel (RPV) for unit 1 of the El Dabaa NPP being built in Egypt by Rosatom has been delivered to the construction site. The equipment, weighing 330 tonnes, was manufactured at the Izhora plant in St Petersburg (part of Rosatom’s Engineering Division). Personnel from Egypt’s Nuclear Power Plants Authority (NNPA), the owner and future operator of El Dabaa NPP, monitored key points during the manufacture of RPV to ensure compliance with quality assurance and industrial processes.
The RPV was transported by a sea vessel that left the port of St Petersburg on 1 October and covered the distance to the construction site in 20 days.
“The reactor pressure vessel for unit 1 of El Dabaa NPP was delivered to the construction site via the special dock constructed by Egypt to receive large and oversized equipment for the El Dabaa NPP,” said NPPA Board Chairman Dr Sherif Helmy. “The reactor pressure vessel is scheduled to be installed in unit 1 mid-November and our teams are working constantly towards the achievement of this key project milestone.”
Alexey Kononenko, Vice President of Atomstroyexport (part of Rosatom) and Director for El Dabaa NPP Construction Project, noted: “Today we have witnessed an important milestone in the implementation of El Dabaa NPP construction project: delivery of the reactor pressure vessel to the construction site. This result reflects efficient cooperation of our international team. We are now standing at the threshold of the main production event of the year, which is installation of the reactor pressure vessel for unit 1.
El Dabaa NPP will comprise four units with Generation III+ VVER-1200 pressurised water reactors. The NPP is being constructed in accordance with contracts that entered into force in 2017. The $30bn project is mainly financed through a $25bn Russian loan. Rosatom will supply nuclear fuel throughout the lifecycle of the plant, arrange for the training of the Egyptian personnel, and assist in the operation and maintenance of the plant for the first 10 years. The reference plant is the Leningrad-II NPP.
Construction of all four units is planned for completion by 2028-2029, and Egypt expects that the NPP will reach full capacity by 2030.
