Westinghouse said in a statement that the contract will cover a project with a nine-year timeframe, but did not disclose the value of the contract.
The company said it will be the largest commercial agreement signed for I&C since the equipment was originally installed at Temelin in 2000 by Westinghouse.
“We will replace an integrated complex set of several fully redundant I&C systems that have been operating reliably at Temelin nuclear power station since their original installation in 2000,” said Bohdan Zronek, head of the nuclear power division at ČEZ.
The upgrades will allow the company to reach its long-term operation goals for Temelin, Mr Zronek added.
“This upgrade is not a solution to a sudden need, but a carefully prepared step in the gradual renewal of the equipment with a view to the planned sixty-year and possibly even longer operation. This is why the entire project is spread out until 2029”, he said.
ČEZ said in a separate statement that the I&C project is not expected to disrupt the operation of the Temelin units, which was an important part of the agreement with Westinghouse.
According to the statement, physical work will start this year, but some of the activities will only be possible during the planned major outages for fuel replacement, with the first scheduled for April 2022.
ČEZ said that during the upgrade project workers will replace some systems and some of the fixed equipment, including the buses and control elements involved.
Temelín-1, a VVER-1000 pressurised water reactor unit, began commercial operation in June 2002 and is one of the newest nuclear power plants in Europe. An identical unit, Temelín-2, began commercial operation in April 2003. ČEZ has said it is planning to operate both units for 60 years.
