Vladimir Saytiev, head of the department for NPP construction in India, told us more about the progress of works at the ROSATOM overseas construction site. As he pointed out, these hot performance tests are intended for comprehensive inspection of all systems and equipment before the first approach of criticality. As such, the design operation of all process systems and equipment, process control systems, i.e. electrical equipment and common plant systems will be verified during this phase.

“All procedures and tests prior to Unit 2 commissioning are carried out at an advanced engineering level in compliance with all requirements, codes and standards of the field of nuclear power,” Mr Saytiev noted.

Certificate of the provisional acceptance of Kudankulam 1 was signed on 27 December 2014 by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India and NIAEP-ASE. The power unit was transferred for one-year warranty period operation, which will last until the end of 2015.

In the meantime, ROSATOM fuel subsidiary TVEL has signed a contract with with the Indian Department of Atomic Energy for the supply of enriched uranium fuel pellets for Tarapur reactor. A series of shipments is planned for this year to the Nuclear Fuel Centre in Hyderabad, a fuel assembly production site for the Tarapur nuclear power plant. 

Russia has been supplying nuclear fuel components for the Indian boiling water reactor since 2000. The fuel pellets for Tarapur reactor are produced at the ROSATOM machine building plant in the town of Elektrostal, which has good partnership with India for many years so far.

As part of cooperation with the Indian Department of Atomic Energy, TVEL also supplies nuclear fuel to Kudankulam 1 and 2. The fuel supply contract is valid within the whole service life of power units. In addition, as part of cooperation between Russian and India, TVEL supplies natural enriched uranium dioxide pellets for the Rajasthan pressurized heavy-water reactor.

In 2014, the new contracts between TVEL and its foreign partners exceeded $3 billion, with a ten-year order portfolio maintained at more than $10 billion. In 2014, TVEL signed fuel supply contracts with nuclear power plants in Hungary, Finland and Slovakia, as well as with Czech Republic, the Netherlands and Uzbekistan for research reactors.