Nuclearelectrica announced the signing on Thursday in Rome of a Memorandum of Understanding with SACE and Ansaldo Nucleare to advance the development and financing of the re-technology of Cernavoda CNE Units 1 and Cernavoda CNE Units 3 and 4, two of Nuclearelectrica’s strategic technology projects. WHEN. This memorandum is surprising given that Nuclearelectrica is working with Canadian companies to renovate Unit #1.

In addition, although Nuclearelectrica is owned by the Ministry of Energy as the majority shareholder, the memorandum was signed in the presence of Economy Minister Stefan-Radu Oprea, not Energy Minister Sebastián Burdughi. Oprea (PSD) is part of the delegation accompanying Prime Minister Marcel Čolaka during his visit to Italy. Bourduya (PNL) is also not part of the delegation.

It will be recalled that in November Nuclearelectrica signed a contract worth 781 million Canadian dollars (about 520 million euros). The contract provides for the supply of tools and components, as well as engineering and technological services to extend the life of CNE Cernavodă unit 1.

The Canadians at AtkinsRéalis have an exclusive license to the CANDU intellectual property portfolio. AtkinsRéalis is the only company involved in all CANDU reactor life extension projects to date worldwide, including Asia, North and South America.

One Italian company wants to apply for engineering services, while another wants to offer up to €2 billion in financing

According to Nuclearelectrica, the energy company Ansaldo Nucleare wants to make a proposal for the provision of engineering and project management services, the acquisition, installation and commissioning of components and systems, mainly for the classic part of the plant, necessary for the completion of construction. and commissioning of both power unit 1 and units 3 and 4 are in operation.

SACE, the Italian export credit agency, intends to support the financing of two projects of SN Nuclearelectrica SA for up to 2 billion euros, subject to SACE procedures, conditions agreed by the parties and the relevant approvals of the relevant Italian authorities.

“Our partnership with Ansaldo Nucleare is a long-standing collaboration based on performance and professionalism that dates back to the start of commissioning of Unit 1. We therefore look forward to continuing this partnership for the new units. We greatly appreciate SACE joining this Memorandum of Understanding and the level of confidence in nuclear power generation capacity in Romania,” said Cosmin Gice, CEO of Nuclearelectrica.

“We are extremely pleased with this agreement, which allows us to strengthen our collaboration with SNN, a historic partner with whom we have a relationship of trust spanning more than 40 years,” said Daniela Gentile, CEO of Ansaldo Nucleare. “Thanks to SACE, we can put our expertise at the service of Romania’s growth and development, which will benefit the entire Italian energy supply chain.”

“We are glad to be an active part of Italy’s support for the Romanian nuclear program. Our intervention will support Ansaldo Nucleare and with it the entire Italian nuclear supply chain,” said Filippo Giansante, President of SACE.

Stage of reconstruction of power unit No. 1 from Chernavoda

The reconstruction project of power unit No. 1 is in the second stage of implementation, which includes the provision of financial resources for the implementation of the reconstruction project, preparation for the implementation of measures identified and defined in stage I, as well as obtaining all necessary approvals and opinions for the implementation of the project.

To date, the project has progressed through contracting for engineering services, with a C$781 million contract signed with Candu Energy and Canadian Commercial Corporation to supply equipment and components for the reactor.

Currently, the procedure related to the Framework Agreement for Project Management Services and Technical Assistance required for the preparation and implementation of the CNE Cernavodă Unit 1 Reconstruction Project is in the process of completion.

The project of power units 3 and 4 is in the first stage, which includes the commissioning of the project company EnergoNuclear, the conclusion of contracts for the provision of technical and legal assistance services and the conclusion of contracts for engineering services to update the technical documentation and nuclear safety documentation necessary for the continuation of the project.

EnergoNuclear was re-commissioned in September 2021, technically critical positions were filled and an engineering services contract was awarded to Candu Energy for structural re-evaluation, including nuclear safety design improvements.

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