National Atomic Company Kazatomprom and China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGNPC) have announced the start of construction of nuclear fuel fabrication plant in Kazakhstan.
As part of an agreement signed earlier with Ulba-FA, France-based Areva will provide a license for fuel fabrication technology, engineering documentation, supply the key production equipment, personnel training and others for the facility.
The plant will be managed by Ulba-FA, a joint venture between Kazatomprom’s subsidiary Ulba Metallurgical Plant JSC with 51% stake and CGNPC subsidiary CGN-URC with 49% interest.
Kazatomprom CEO Askar Zhumagaliyev said: “This FA manufacturing plant construction is the result of a long-term cooperation of Kazakhstan, China and France and one of the strategic steps of Kazatomprom towards production diversification.
“Maintaining our uranium mining leadership, we are planning to offer to the market the fuel for nuclear power plants of Kazakhstan’s origin, which will allow us to strengthen our position on the global nuclear market.”
Areva will provide FA production technology for the facility, which is scheduled to be commissioned in 2020.
CGNPC director general Zhang Shanming said: “CGNPC has been cooperating with Kazatomprom in uranium mining, natural uranium trading and nuclear fuel pellets fabrication since 2006.
“Execution of the joint fuel project allowed both companies to take their cooperation to a new level.”
Areva said that the project will allow the establishment of a modern, completely automated production with the capacity of 200t of fuel assemblies annually.
Fuel assembly is the finished, manufactured product which is used as fuel for nuclear power plants.
Image: Construction commenced at nuclear fuel fabrication plant in Kazakhstan. Photo: courtesy of Atomic Company KazAtomProm.