The company, head-quartered in Belgium, said in a statement that it will help during the conceptual design phase of the SMR plant. Engineers have already conducted technical and economic studies to confirm several design options.
The statement said the contract with EDF, valid until October 2022, will include conceptual design studies for parts of the plant’s conventional island, water intake and servicing system, and the 3D modelling of buildings for these systems.
Tractebel will also be responsible for civil engineering preliminary studies, the evaluation of costs, and will draw up a Nuward site layout.
In 2019, EDF, the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), reactor design and maintenance company TechnicAtome and the Naval Group announced plans to develop an SMR that could be on the market by the end of the next decade.
Nuward is a Generation III pressurised water reactor combining two 170 MW reactors for a total output of 340 MW. One of the main characteristics of the plant will be the integration of proven PWR technology into a compact modular configuration.
According to EDF, Nuward will use best in class French technologies from more than 50 years of experience in PWR design, development, construction and more than 2,000 reactor years of PWR operating experience.
Tractebel said the basic design completion stage for the SMR plant is expected to start in 2023. The company said it is planning to work with EDF during this new phase on systems studies, civil and layout engineering, and electrical and safety licensing studies.
