Nuclearelectrica Shareholders Approve First Phase Of Cernavodă-1 Refurbishment Project

3 Oct (NucNet): Nuclearelectrica shareholders have approved the first phase of a refurbishment project for the Cernavodă-1 nuclear power unit in Romania, the company said in a statement. The decision was made by the extraordinary general meeting of shareholders on 28 September 2017. The first phase of the refurbishment project, which will see the 650-MW Candu 6 unit’s operating life extended beyond its original 210,000 equivalent full power hours, involves preparation of a feasibility study that will be presented to shareholders for approval in 2021, Nuclearelectrica said. Nuclearelectrica has contracted a study with Candu Energy, the design authority, to carry out an assessment to establish the number of operating hours the unit can be extended by. Preliminary analysis in 2015 indicated that 220,000 to 230,000 equivalent full power hours would be feasible, with the final results of the study due by the end of 2017. Phase 2 of the project will involve procurement of equipment and components that have a long manufacturing cycle, awarding the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract, and obtaining authorisation from the Romanian regulator. Phase 3 is actual implementation, which is scheduled for December 2026 to December 2028. The Cernavodă nuclear station has two commercially operational Candu 6 pressurised heavy water reactors supplied by Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd and built under the supervision of a Canadian-Italian consortium of AECL and Ansaldo. Unit 1 began commercial operation in 1996, after work had been suspended on a further four units in 1991. Unit 2 was subsequently completed and began commercial operation in 2007. In November 2015, Nuclearelectrica and China General Nuclear Power Corporation signed a memorandum of understanding on the development, construction, operation and eventual decommissioning of the planned Cernavodă-3 and -4 units.