Production of key components for a nuclear power plant is a long and technologically complex process. In July this year, Russian steel-­makers shipped a large batch of billets to be processed into the equipment for Unit 1 of Egypt’s El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant.

AEM SpetsStal (a steel-­making facility of Rosatom’s mechanical engineering division) manufactured 24 large-size billets weighing over 650 tonnes. The billets were shipped to three of Rosatom’s production sites in Volgodonsk, Petrozavodsk and Saint Petersburg. They will be used to make primary circuit components, the reactor pressure vessel, pressurizer, and primary coolant pipes.

Production of a VVER‑1200 reactor vessel takes around 840 days from design to delivery. At every stage of the manufacturing process, priority is given to product quality and safety during subsequent operation. The general quality assurance plan contains more than 300 control points.

The pressurizer is a critical piece of the nuclear station’s equipment. It is designed to maintain pressure in the primary circuit in nominal operation modes and level off pressure changes in transient and emergency modes.

By now, AEM SpetsStal has manufactured 75 % of the steel billets that will be used to make equipment for the first unit of the Egyptian nuclear station. The remaining billets are planned to be produced by the end of 2024. They are made of special grade steels designed for the operation in specific conditions. The billets go through several levels of control, with their steel properties being carefully analyzed for compliance with the pre-designed parameters.

Another production facility of Rosatom’s mechanical engineering division, PetrozavodskMash, proceeded to manufacture pipes for the reactor island of El Dabaa Unit 1. Workers began cladding the pipes intended for the primary coolant circuit. The total weight of the set of pipes will amount to 276 tonnes.

Primary coolant pipes connect all the systems and equipment of the primary coolant circuit. They are arranged in four loops, each being connected to the reactor and comprising a primary coolant pump and a steam generator. When the reactor is in operation, coolant with a temperature of 320 °C is circulated through the primary coolant circuit.

Production of key components for a nuclear power plant is a complex multistage process. To get an idea how long it is, consider that the ceremonial start to the production of the reactor pressure vessel for El Dabaa Unit 1 was given two years ago, in June 2022.