Director of the Nuclear Power Plant Construction Directorate of the Agency for the Development of Nuclear Energy (Uzatom) Otabek Amanov spoke to journalists on October 15 about the progress of the small nuclear power plant project in Uzbekistan and other details of the facility, a Gazeta.uz correspondent reports.

The Directorate for Construction of Nuclear Power Plants and Atomstroyexport (an engineering division of Rosatom) signed a contract for the construction of a small-capacity nuclear power plant (SPP) in Uzbekistan in May. The 330-megawatt SPP (six 55-megawatt reactors each) will be built in the Jizzakh region near Lake Tuzkan. Rosatom will act as the general contractor for the construction of the plant, and Uzbek companies will also be involved in the construction.

Construction stages

According to Otabek Amanov, UzGASHKLITI (design research institute for engineering surveys in construction, geoinformatics and urban planning cadastre) is currently conducting routine observations of the components of the natural environment at the site. This includes aerometeorological, hydrological, hydrogeological and seismological studies.

“Preparatory work is also underway at the site to begin construction and installation work on the shift camp for construction workers, where 10,000 workers will work during the peak of construction. In addition, we have begun work on designing the nuclear power plant itself. The Russian delegation is currently here, and we are reviewing the technical specifications for developing design documentation for a low-power nuclear power plant. We have also selected institutes to develop a feasibility study for the project,” he said.

In addition, the technical specifications for the draft environmental impact statement (EIS) have been developed.

By the end of 2024, it is planned to begin construction of a shift camp for construction workers, as well as construction and installation work at the construction and installation base.

“What is this base for? To build a nuclear power plant, we must build repair and mechanical workshops, garages for special equipment, a reinforcement shop, concrete mixing units there. This is a whole complex. And we are going to start this work. In addition, we will begin to develop a feasibility study for the project, we will begin to develop a PZVOS for the project and a preliminary report on the justification of the safety of the project. We need these three documents to obtain permission to locate our nuclear power plant,” explained Otabek Amanov.

According to the legislation in Uzbekistan and the recommendations of the IAEA, in order to build a nuclear power plant it is necessary to obtain three main documents: permission to locate the station, a construction license and an operating license.

In 2025, it is planned to continue work on the development of the feasibility study, the PZVOS and other documents, as well as construction and installation work on the rotational camp.

“At the end of next year, we plan to receive permission from our regulator to place a nuclear power plant on the site. In addition, we will place [orders for the production of] reactors, turbines, generators and other large-block equipment with a long manufacturing cycle. The production of the reactor itself will take from 36 to 40 months,” said Otabek Amanov.

To obtain a placement permit, it is necessary to develop technical documents, conduct an examination and public hearings to assess the impact on the environment.

At the beginning of 2026, it is planned to obtain permission to pour the “first concrete” into the foundation slab of the power unit.

The head of the directorate indicated that timely placement of orders for the supply of equipment will allow the launch of the first stage of the small nuclear power plant by the end of 2029.

International project

It is planned to attract foreign companies to participate in the construction of the nuclear power plant.

“The nuclear power plant consists of two large components – a nuclear island and an auxiliary facility. Naturally, we will implement the nuclear island with our general contractor Atomstroyexport (Rosatom). And we want to somehow combine the auxiliary facility so that international companies participate, so that it is an international project. We are currently working on options,” said Otabek Amanov.

In August, a delegation from Uzatom visited China, where they held meetings with Chinese companies that expressed a desire to participate in the project, that is, to supply turbine equipment, generators, and dry cooling towers (a device for cooling nuclear power plant equipment without evaporating water).

“We are already determined to use dry cooling towers so as not to depend on water resources. Hungarian companies are also interested, they have very good developments, solutions for dry cooling towers. Both European and Asian companies have expressed a desire to participate in our project,” he said.

The head of the directorate noted that the recently created company Saneg Atom is not participating in the project and no negotiations are being conducted with it.

Financing

Otabek Amanov reported that negotiations are underway with foreign and domestic banks regarding financing the project to build a small nuclear power plant.

“There are banks from Europe, Russia and local banks. Because some parts of the infrastructure will be built by local contractors… The banks’ proposals will be coordinated with the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Central Bank,” he noted.

The cost of the project has not yet been disclosed.

Four agreements with Rosatom

The head of the directorate reported that Uzbekistan had concluded several agreements with Rosatom within the framework of the contract strategy: agreements on the construction of a nuclear power plant, on personnel training, on the import of fuel for the nuclear power plant, on the service for operating the plant and the removal of nuclear waste.

“Many foreign companies do not agree to the latest agreement, that is, to export used nuclear fuel. We agreed with Rosatom that used nuclear fuel will be exported to Russia, will be reprocessed there, and some necessary components will be returned to Uzbekistan,” he said.

It is planned to use domestic uranium for nuclear fuel, which will be enriched in Russia.

“Uranium oxide-235 enriched to 19% or 20% will be used. This fuel will be imported, but there is one thing. It will be produced using local Uzbek uranium supplied by the customer. That is, Uzbek uranium will be exported, fabricated, fuel manufactured, and then it will be brought back. Because it will be local uranium, we hope that the cost of the fuel will be much lower,” said Otabek Amanov.

About 100 specialists from Uzbekistan undergo training at the Tashkent branch of the National Research Nuclear University MEPhI every year.

“We will send about 500 specialists to Russia for two years to become fully familiar with this technology. One of the first facilities at the nuclear power plant will be a training center. These specialists will then undergo training at the center for another two years. By 2029, we will have trained 500 local personnel who will also work during the construction of the plant,” he said.

The nuclear power plant is the property of Uzbekistan

Otabek Amanov emphasized that the small nuclear power plant will be owned by Uzbekistan.

“The station will be fully owned by the Republic of Uzbekistan. The station will be managed by an operator – a local company, that is, at present the directorate has the powers of an operator. That is, it will be managed by a state operator company that will have the appropriate license for operation,” said the head of the directorate.

The electricity produced, as in other power plants (thermal, solar, wind and coal), will be purchased by the company “Uzenergosotish” and supplied to consumers through “National Electric Grids”.

    • The contract for the construction of the SNPP was signed on May 27 between the Directorate for the Construction of Nuclear Power Plants and Atomstroyexport (the engineering division of Rosatom) during the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Tashkent. Rosatom will act as the general contractor for the construction of the station, and Uzbek companies will also be involved in the construction.
    • President Shavkat Mirziyoyev called the project to build a small nuclear power plant “vitally important.” “Considering the availability of large domestic uranium reserves and its export to third countries, this project is vitally important for us if we are thinking about the prospects for entering a new stage of the country’s development,” he said.
    • Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev said that the plant is planned to be commissioned “in stages, module by module” from 2029 to 2033. The small nuclear power plant will have RITM-200N pressurized water nuclear reactors , which were used in nuclear icebreakers, but not a single land-based nuclear power plant with these reactors has yet been built.
    • On September 10, the NPP Construction Directorate and Atomstroyexport signed a protocol on the commencement of work on the station project. This marks the start of the active phase of preparatory work on the construction site and the development of design documentation.
    • Energy Minister Jurabek Mirzamakhmudov recently stated that Uzbekistan still needs a large nuclear power plant. Its construction is possible before 2040.

https://www.gazeta.uz/ru/2024/10/15/nuclear-power-station/