Rosatom to partner on lead-bismuth fast reactor

State-owned Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation, Russia's nuclear regulatory body, and En+ Group, the country's largest privately run energy company, have set up a 50:50 joint venture, OAO AKME Engineering, that will design and manufacture SVBR-100, a prototype 100-MW, lead-bismuth fast reactor.

The SVR-100 will be developed at Rosatom's facilities, and the aim of the project is to commercialize the technology. As part of its short-term plans, OAO AKME intends to complete research and development, then produce a detailed design of the pilot reactor and associated equipment. OAO AKME also will procure the licenses necessary to operate the pilot project, which is scheduled to be commissioned around 2019.

Nuclear power plants that are fitted with SVBR reactors can play a critical role in providing power to remote regional consumers. It would be possible to install the technology in mobile or floating nuclear power plants that also would have the capacity to convert seawater. Nuclear submarines already have proved the safety and efficiency of the lead-bismuth cooled reactor technology.

Lead-bismuth Eutectic (LBE) is a eutectic alloy of lead (44.5%) and bismuth (55.5%) that is being proposed as a coolant in the Generation IV reactors. With a boiling point (1,670 degrees Celsius) that is significantly higher than that of sodium-based coolants, the LBE makes it possible to operate a reactor without the risk of the coolant boiling at higher temperatures. This improves the thermal efficiency of the system, and hydrogen is produced by way of thermo-chemical processes. Unlike sodium-based products, lead and LBE do not react readily with air or water, making an intermediate coolant loop unnecessary; that effectively reduces the cost of the plant infrastructure.

Cost estimates have revealed that the cost of setting up a 1-kilowatt (kW) nuclear power plant with the new technology would be comparable to that of constructing a 1-kW coal-fired power plant. This makes the new power plants one of the least expensive in the power sector. Further, there would be no greenhouse gas emission.

According to the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) estimates, about 500 to 1,000 small- to medium-capacity power generating units based on SVBR technology could be launched within 2040, and that would mean about 10% to 15% of the global small- to medium-capacity nuclear power market would be accounted for by SVBR technology.

En+ Group is an industrial conglomerate that focuses on businesses that extract raw materials for producing energy, generate electricity, and produce non-ferrous metals. The company has a controlling stake in United Company RUSAL, which is the world's largest producer of aluminum and alumina, and accounts for 11% of the global aluminum and 13% of the global alumina produced. EuroSibEnergo, Russia's largest private-sector energy company, is also owned by En+ Group.

En+ Group has large assets in the oil, gas and coal sectors as well. The group's companies produce about 9% of Russia's electricity and 5% of the nation's coal.