The South African Pebble Bed Modular Reactor (PBMR) company has awarded a $20 million contract for the design, procurement, construction and cold commissioning of its pilot fuel plant utilities and infrastructure at Pelindaba near Pretoria.

The contract for the facility, which will have an initial capacity of 270,000 nuclear fuel spheres per year, was awarded to Uhde, a South African division of Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Engineering Ltd.

The utilities to serve the plant will be designed and installed as part of this contract, which is due for completion in January 2007.