Bulgaria / Westinghouse Signs Key Agreements For New Kozloduy Nuclear Plants ( www.nucnet.org )

Localisation a key objective as plans progress for two AP1000 reactors.

US-based Westinghouse has signed memorandums of understanding with 17 Bulgarian suppliers to support forthcoming AP1000 nuclear projects at the Kozloduy nuclear power station site in northern Bulgaria, and other projects throughout the region.

The company said the MOUs were a result of engagement with local suppliers following the Westinghouse supplier symposium in February with Bulgarian companies.

Westinghouse said the agreements outline the potential for manufacturing of key components, including large structural modules, cranes, heat exchangers and pressure vessels, and the provision of various engineering, transportation, consulting and construction services.

Suppliers include nuclear maintenance, repair and modernisation enterprise Atomenergoremont, heavy equipment manufacturer Bulmachinery and certification provider Bureau Veritas Bulgaria,

Petyo Ivanov, executive director of state company Kozloduy NPP New Build, which was formed to manage the project to build two new plants, Kozloduy-7 and -8, said ensuring high localisation of work remains a crucial objective.

“We expect these Bulgarian companies to become a vital part of the Westinghouse worldwide supply chain, more specifically for all their European new built projects,” he said.

Lyuben Marinov, also an executive director at Kozloduy NPP New Build, said an adequate supply chain is a key requirement for a successful project.

In June 2023 Westinghouse was awarded a front-end engineering and design contract with Kozloduy NPP New Build for its AP1000 pressurised water reactor technology.

In October 2023, Westinghouse signed MOUs with five other Bulgarian suppliers for Kozloduy and other European projects, including for the manufacture of instrumentation and controls (I&C) systems, radiation monitoring systems and various services.

Bulgaria expects the first of the two new AP1000 reactors at Kozloduy to be ready by 2035 with a second one two years later.

Energy minister Rumen Radev said recently Bulgaria would like the cost of the two-unit project to not exceed $14bn (€13bn).

There are two 1,000-MW Russia-designed VVER units already in operation at Kozloduy – Bulgaria’s only commercial nuclear power station – and four older VVER units that have been permanently shut down. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Kozloduy’s two operating units provide about a third of the Bulgaria’s electricity generation.