Westinghouse Signed MoU For Potential New Reactors In Slovakia

Westinghouse Electric Company (ENS Corporate Member) announced the signing of memorandums of understanding (MOU) with Slovak state-owned nuclear company JAVYS on the potential deployment of AP1000 reactors and AP300 small modular reactors (SMR).

The MOUs signed yesterday, 17th July 2023, create a framework for the two parties to collaborate on detailed technical and developmental plans while exploring the next steps to implement the proven reactor technologies in Slovakia.

Slovakia is a country that understands well the benefits of nuclear energy and we are very excited to be working with the JAVYS team to secure their energy future with our advanced reactor technologies

said David Durham, Westinghouse President for Energy Systems.

Indeed, nuclear power has a crucial role in the country’s energy mix. Slovakia recently connected to the grid its latest reactor, Mochovce-3, a VVER-440 pressurised water reactor (PWR) with an installed capacity of 471 MW.

Once fully operational, Slovenské elektráne said also that the generation from Mochovce-3 will cover about 13% of Slovakia’s total electricity consumption, increasing the share of nuclear energy in the total electricity mix from 52% to 65%, putting the country second behind only France.

Furthermore, the annual production of the reactor will save 2.6 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually.

Read the full Westinghouse Press Release.

The AP1000 is a Generation III+ reactor with fully passive safety systems, modular construction design, and a very small footprint per MWe. In the United States at the Vogtle site, one AP1000 unit recently began producing power for the grid while a second unit prepares for initial fuel load.

Four AP1000 reactors are currently setting operational performance and availability records in China with six additional reactors under construction. Westinghouse AP1000 technology also has been selected in Poland and for nine units in Ukraine. It is also under consideration at multiple other sites in Central and Eastern Europe, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

The AP300 small modular reactor (SMR) is a 300-MWe single-loop pressurized water reactor that has been unveiled by Westinghouse last May.

It will utilise identical AP1000 technology, to include major equipment, structural components, passive safety, proven fuel, and I&C systems.

The company expects the new design will get federal approval in 2027 and the first unit may start delivering power to the grid in about 2033.