https://www.engineeringnews.co.za

Eskom expects 2021 replacement of generators at nuclear plant

10th September 2020

By: Reuters

  

Font size: - +

Power utility Eskom said on Thursday it was on track to install six new steam generators at its Koeberg nuclear power plant in 2021, with the first already in transit and expected to arrive in Cape Town later this month.

The R4.3-billion project, which was unsuccessfully challenged in court by Westinghouse following its award to then French rival Areva, is seen as crucial for South African attempts to prolong Koeberg's operations.

The original generators, which have U-tube piping susceptible to cracking, are heat exchangers used to convert water into steam from heat produced in a nuclear reactor core.

Africa's only commercial nuclear power plant situated close to Cape Town, Koeberg has two pressurised water reactors generating around 1 940 megawatts of power and in operation since 1985.

"We are on track and progressing according to plan for installation during the next unit 1 and 2 outages," said an Eskom spokeswoman.

"Three steam generators have been completely built and the remaining three for Koeberg Unit 2 are progressing well, even given the Covid-19 pandemic and consequences on productivity," the spokeswoman added.

It is anticipated that the first set of generators will be replaced in February next year and the second set in September 2021 during scheduled refuelling maintenance, with each unit potentially offline for four months.

Each weighing around 366 tonnes, the generators are being assembled in China before shipped across to South Africa and then transported on flat-bed trucks to their destination.

The old radioactive generators will be stored in a temporary site at Koeberg, Eskom said, before being finally disposed of underground "as complete and sealed units" at South Africa's remote Vaalputs radioactive storage facility in the Northern Cape.

Edited by Reuters

Article Enquiry

Email Article

Save Article

Feedback

To advertise email advertising@creamermedia.co.za or click here

Showroom

The Steel Tube Export Association of South Africa
Steel Tube Export Association of South Africa

The Steel Tube Export Association of South Africa was established to develop sustainable, internationally competitive carbon steel tube and pipe...

VISIT SHOWROOM 
Rentech
Rentech

Rentech provides renewable energy products and services to the local and selected African markets. Supplying inverters, lithium and lead-acid...

VISIT SHOWROOM 

Latest Multimedia

sponsored by

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION







301

sq:0.045 1.052s - 122pq - 2rq
Subscribe Now