Kozloduy NPP failed to submit two important documents for the licensing of American fresh nuclear fuel to the Nuclear Regulatory Agency. Without them, the procedure for assessing the compatibility of the new fuel with the currently used Russian cannot be carried out. If these documents are not submitted to the regulator by October 15, it will be forced to refuse permission to use the Westinghouse fuel, which threatens the operation of Unit V of our nuclear power plant.
This is clear from an announcement by the Nuclear Regulatory Agency (NRA), which states that the review for formal regularity of the application submitted by the Kozloduy NPP for the issuance of a permit to carry out a phased transition of Unit V to the use of fuel has been completed RWFA manufactured by Westinghouse.
However, a draft amendment to part of the “Accident Analysis” from the Safety Analysis Report was missing, as well as a draft amendment to the administrative instruction “Preparation of reports with neutron-physical characteristics of the VVER-1000 reactor”. These documents are important for safety analyses, assessments and calculations, without which the NRA cannot assess the impact of the proposed change on the limits and conditions for safe operation of the unit. Without them, the fulfillment of the regulatory safety requirements in their entirety cannot be assessed, the agency states.
According to her, the missing documents are a failure to fulfill the requirements of the Ordinance on the procedure for issuing licenses and permits for the safe use of nuclear energy, according to which she was given the deadline of October 15 to provide the two documents.
The nuclear power plant has not issued an opinion on the case.
According to the contract signed at the end of last year with “Westinghouse”, in April 2024 the company must deliver the first fresh nuclear fuel, for its first loading of 1/4 in the V reactor. The rest remains Russian fuel and it is the reconciliation of the two types that is important to assess.
If the American fuel is not licensed in time, the Kozloduy NPP has three options. The most unfavorable for our electricity market is to stop the V block pending the permit. The other is to refuel with the Russian TVSA fuel available for block VI, which is licensed and compatible with the rods for block V. However, if this move is taken, experts claim that American fuel cannot be reconciled with TVSA. The third option is to ask the Russian TVEL for additional supply under the contract expiring at the end of 2025, which is possible, but requires permission from the European Supply Agency, EURATOM.
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