The change of generations and the repeated departures of personnel to other nuclear projects in the world in recent years, as well as the lack of qualified resources in the management of megaprojects worth more than 1 billion euros, are among the reasons why Nuclearelectrica wants to hire external experts to carry out the reconstruction of power unit No. 1 from Chernavoda .

Information appears in the market consultation notice published on Monday, August 8, in the Electronic State Procurement System (SEAP).

The technical documentation states that Nuclearelectrica faces the following problems:

• qualified resources for the management of megaprojects (over 1 billion euros) in the nuclear field of CANDU power plants – absent on the national labor market;
• the change of generations and repeated departures in recent years from the operating organization to other nuclear projects in the world, for which the operating organization, in turn, determined the need for external support;
• the complexity and scope of the project, which requires recourse to numerous resources of external financing and implementation (awarding complex design, procurement, construction contracts, the development of which must be organizationally integrated into the activities of the Reconstruction Directorate);
• constraints related to time and budget constraints, with the feasibility of the project closely depending on whether it is within the expected duration and cost.

“As a result, the Economic Operator is invited to provide the engineering, consulting and project management services necessary for the preparation and implementation of the re-engineering project of Cernavodă CNE Unit 1, through experts experienced in the design, preparation and implementation of the modernization of CANDU plants, in order to provide a scope of specific information to support SN Nuclearelectrica SA staff from the Unit 1 Reconstruction Project implementation team.

At the same time, by involving external experts to work in joint teams with specialists of the reconstruction directorate, prerequisites are created for the transfer of knowledge and experience needed in the next project of reconstruction of power unit 2.”, specified in the procurement documentation.

What does the reconstruction of power unit No. 1 of Chernavoda entail

According to Nuclearelectrica, the Unit 1 upgrade would mean another 30 years of operation beyond 2029 at less than half the cost of a new nuclear reactor. Concretely, this means another 30 years of clean energy without CO2 emissions.[tatedincosturileunuirereactornuclearnouConcretînseamnăîncă30deanideenergiecuratafăremisiideCO2[tatedincosturileunuireactornuclearnouConcretînseamnăîncă30deanideenergiecuratafărăemisiideCO2

In terms of costs, implicitly the subsequent market impact, the NEA-OECD study states that energy produced by extending the life of nuclear units has the lowest cost of all sources, including renewables.

CANDU reactors have an initial life of 30 years. After the modernization process, this lifetime can be extended by another 30 years, which Nuclearelectrica is currently doing with Unit 1, which entered commercial operation in 1996.

Unit 2 was put into operation in 2007, so we can talk about the modernization of Unit 2 in 2037.

Implementation stages: Estimated cost over 1.85 billion euros. Unit 1 will return to operation in 2029

Phase 1 of the Unit 1 refurbishment began in 2017 and was dedicated to identifying and defining the activities required to refurbish U1 to continue operating for another 30-year life cycle. The final product of this stage was the development of a technical and economic feasibility study, approved at the general meeting on February 23, 2022, with an estimated investment cost of 1.85 billion euros.

Phase 2 of the project began with the approval of the feasibility study and includes the provision of financial resources for the development of the U1 Reconstruction Project, preparation for the implementation of activities identified and defined for the reconstruction of U1 in Phase I and obtaining all necessary consents and approvals for the development of this project.

Phase 3 of the project begins with the shutdown of power unit No. 1 in the period 2027-2029 and consists in the effective implementation of works from the U1 reconstruction project on the unit’s facilities, as well as its re-operation with the purpose of commercial operation for a new cycle of operation within 30 years, after 2029.

The estimated cost is EUR 1.85 billion excluding financing and inflation-adjusted renewal costs at the date of signing the contract for the reconstruction of Unit 1 of CNE Cernavodă.