Ukraine’s nuclear utility Energoatom has signed agreements with US companies Holtec and Westinghouse to further develop its nuclear industry. The agreements were signed at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Italy.
The memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Holtec International outlines current areas of cooperation between Energoatom and Holtec International and confirms their intentions to implement joint projects for the construction of a manufacturing plant for fabrication of small modular reactors (SMRs) and used fuel casks using Holtec technology. The MOU was signed by Energoatom head Petro Kotin and Holtec International Vice President Riaz Awan in the presence of Ukraine’s Energy Minister German Galushchenko and Michael Kirst, Deputy Chairman of the Energoatom Supervisory Board.
Kotin noted that at the Centralised Spent Fuel Storage Facility that was built in Ukraine using Holtec technology currently depends on used fuel storage casks are manufactured in the USA, while their fabrication in Ukraine will be cheaper.
The agreement with Westinghouse Electric Company will enable the deployment of full-scale fabrication facilities in Ukraine for the manufacture of nuclear fuel components compatible with Westinghouse technologies. The “meaningful declaration” was signed by Kotin and Aziz Dag, Westinghouse Electric Sweden AB Managing Director and Senior Vice President. It confirms the intention to establish a fabrication line for VVER-1000 fuel assemblies at the facilities of Energoatom’s affiliate. The final agreement is expected to be signed in the near future.
“This agreement is another strategic step towards Ukraine’s energy independence. The development of domestic fabrication of fuel assemblies based on Westinghouse technology not only increases the reliability of nuclear fuel supply, but also eliminates dependence on Russian fuel chains once and for all,” said Energy Minister Galushchenko. “Through this cooperation, we are strengthening the energy security of Ukraine and the entire Europe and building a future with firm integration of Ukrainian nuclear power into the Western market.”
Earlier this year, Westinghouse approved one of Energoatom’s AtomEnergoMash “as a qualified supplier for the manufacturing of top and bottom nozzles for Westinghouse’s VVER-1000 fuel assemblies in Ukraine, paving the way for this new advanced fuel assembly capability in the country”.
“We are proud to extend our strong partnership and shared commitment to energy security in Ukraine,” said Aziz Dag. “Westinghouse has an excellent track record of VVER nuclear fuel design used in VVER-1000 and VVER-440 nuclear power plants in Ukraine.”
“We are continuing our irreversible path to establishing our nuclear fuel assembly line in Ukraine by implementing advanced Westinghouse technologies. I am very grateful to our partners for their trust, based on many years of successful cooperation,” said Kotin.
