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SA firms seeking to cash in on nuclear build will need to prioritise certification

8th April 2016

By: David Oliveira

Creamer Media Staff Writer

  

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South Africa’s new nuclear build, which is expected to add about 9 600 MW of capacity to the national grid, will offer significant employment and growth opportunities for local industries and should not be viewed as a “mysterious and fearsome” industry, independent engineering consultant Andrew Kenny said at the recent Power & Electricity World Africa 2016 conference, in Sandton.

Manufacturing and construction companies, as well as service providers, would stand to benefit from a nuclear build programme, as they already had the capacity to manufacture many of the components needed for a nuclear power station. However, it was important that these com-panies underwent the necessary training and certification processes to meet stringent international nuclear quality requirements if they were to successfully bid on a nuclear project.

Kenny highlighted that nuclear power plants were not significantly different to coal-fired power plants, an area in which South Africa had a significant amount of expertise. He added that, in some ways, nuclear builds were simpler than coal, particularly because nuclear plants were smaller and required fewer components, compared with a coal-fired power station of equivalent capacity.

The most significant difference, according to Kenny, was the higher-quality manufacturing requirements for nuclear components, which often resulted in a significant price increase for similar equipment used at coal stations.

“Local manufacturers . . . already have the engineering expertise. “All they need to do is raise their standards and comply with nuclear codes,” he asserted, adding that this would require training and certification to internationally recognised nuclear standards.

Kenny highlighted that, while South Africa did not currently have the expertise to manufacture specialised nuclear components, such as reactor vessels and steam generators, it did have the ability to manufacture other components, such as turbines, heat exchangers, pumps and pipes.

The components which could be manufactured locally did not all need to be manufactured to nuclear-grade standards, he added.

Kenny suggested that South Africa’s next nuclear build was likely to have a local content no lower than 30%, of which civil works and transport requirements would likely be dominated by local companies. Non-nuclear-grade components such as pumps, valves and pipes could also be manufactured locally.

He pointed out that no country with nuclear expertise was able to achieve 100% localisation, as countries generally focused on achieving comparative advantages by specialising in manufacturing certain nuclear components over others. “Every country must do what it does best.”

Kenny suggested that subsequent nuclear builds would have greater local content, as was the case with France and South Korea, which have significant nuclear manufacturing capabilities.

“South Africa itself might well specialise in the making of certain nuclear components, as we already do with aircraft,” he said.

Edited by Martin Zhuwakinyu
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

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