| Project Detail |
Senior unsecured corporate loan of up to EUR 150 million to S.N. Nuclearelectrica S.A. to finance the construction of a tritium removal facility (the Project).
Project Objectives
Nuclearelectrica operates two CANDU (Canada Deuterium Uranium) units at its Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant (Cernavoda NPP): Unit 1 commissioned in 1996 and Unit 2 commissioned in 2007. CANDU type reactors, of which these are the only examples operating in Europe, use heavy water (deuterium oxide) as a moderator and coolant. Over time the radioactive hydrogen isotope tritium accumulates in the heavy water.
By now Cernavoda NPP has accumulated high volumes of such radioactive, tritiated water in its reactors. Removal of the tritium and placing it in safe, long-term storage, is an essential part of the decommissioning process. The alternative to this treatment is to store large volumes of highly radioactive water in tanks on-site for many decades. This would be very costly and entail potential environmental risks.
The proposed construction of a tritium removal facility (TRF) at Cernavoda NPP will extract tritium from the tritiated heavy water. The process will result in stable, non-radioactive heavy water, and a very small volume of concentrated tritium. The concentrated tritium can then more easily be stored to ensure its containment according to the applicable nuclear safety regulations. In addition, the processed heavy water can be reused as moderator and coolant, saving energy for the production of new heavy water.
The Project will focus on environmental improvement. This entails the following: i) the management of radioactive waste by reducing the amount of radioactive material and avoiding the hazards of storing it in large containers on site; ii) improvement of operational safety by reducing exposure to radiation for the staff working in the plant; and iii) ensuring compliance with the applicable regulations. |
