A consortium of units of Russian nuclear group Rosatom and France's Electricite de France (EdF) have signed with Bulgaria's sole nuclear power plant (NPP) Kozloduy an agreement to prove the feasibility of extending the lifespan of one of its two operational units,Rosatom's Rosenergoatom said.
The deal was
signed on September 29.
The lifespan of Kozloduy's Unit 5 may be extended
to up to 60 years, Rosenergoatom said on Wednesday on its website, adding that
the project will be implemented as soon as possible. The power plant's Units 5
and 6 were designed for a lifespan of 30 years, ending in 2017 and 2021,
respectively. Kozloduy would need to apply for renewal of the two units’
licences to prolong their operation.
The project to extend the lifespan
of the reactors dates back to April 2012 when Bulgaria hireda consortium of
Rosenergoatom and EdF to prepare a study on the condition of Units 5 and 6 and
make a residual life assessment of their equipment
The consortium has
developed a programme that will form the basis for further preparation of the
NPP's Unit 5 for operation beyond its design service life, according to the
Rosenergoatom. The three companies have received the approval of the Bulgaria
authorities.
In May the plant's then CEO Ivan Genov said the extension of
Kozloduy’s two units would costs some 800 million levs ($522.2 million/409
million).
The Kozloduy NPP remained with two operational reactors of
1,000 megawatts (MW) each after the country closed down four units of 440 MW
each to address nuclear safety concerns of the European Union prior to its
accession to the bloc. Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007.
In April 2012, the
government in Sofia decided to add another 1,000 MW unit to the plant, a project
that is currently taking shape. U.S.-based Westinghouse, controlled by Japan's
Toshiba Group, said in August it signed a shareholder agreement following
consultations with all Bulgarian political parties for the construction of a new
unit at the NPP. The AP1000 reactor is projected to be online by
2023.
The U.S. company added at the time that the agreement will be
subject to future government oversight.
Kozloduy is located in northwest
Bulgaria, on the Danubian bank.