Saudi - S. Korea Nuclear Deal

Saudi Arabia and South Korea signed five key accords on Tuesday in Riyadh including a plan to study the feasibility of building nuclear reactors worth SR7.5 billion across the country. The two countries, under the provisions of the signed MoU, are set to conduct a three-year preliminary study, to be completed in 2018, on the feasibility of constructing the nuclear reactors in Saudi Arabia.

 

King Salman and South Korean president Park Geun-hye.

Jungho Lee, a spokesman of the South Korean Embassy, said the framework agreement would include technical cooperation, research and development, and the exchange of personnel. According to reports, the agreement would be reached between King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (KACARE) and South Korea’s science, ICT and future planning ministry.

Saudi Arabia is the biggest petroleum exporter and dependent on oil and gas for its electricity production. The late King Abdullah established KACARE in 2010 to develop alternate energy, including atomic power. Lee said the talks between King Salman and Park looked largely at economic, and science and technology cooperation. It was an “opportunity to take bilateral ties to a new level,” he said.

 

Nuclear Plant.

“The Republic of Korea became the first foreign country with which the Kingdom signed such key accords after King Salman ascended to the throne, and it is a real honor,” said Lee. King Salman also hosted a lunch for Park, while Crown Prince Muqrin, deputy premier; and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif, second deputy premier and minister of interior, called on Park separately on Tuesday.

Lee said the Korean president, who is accompanied by over 100 top businesspeople, would attend a Saudi-Korean business conference here on Wednesday. He said the two sides also touched on security issues and challenges facing the Middle East. An MoU was also signed between the Korean Ministry of Science and King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology. 

 

Source: Arab News

Chinese Reactor Design Passes Safety Review

The GRSR process reviews the completely- or partially-developed safety cases of new reactor designs that are not yet in the licensing stage. It involves an international team of experts evaluating design safety case claims against selected and applicable IAEA safety standards. China signed an agreement with the IAEA last December for a GRSR review of CNNC's ACP1000 design. 

 

How a plant based on the ACP1000 could appear (Image: CNNC)

The ACP1000 reactor design has successfully passed the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA's)Generic Reactor Safety Review (GRSR), China National Nuclear Corporation has announced.

CNNC has now announced that the design has successfully completed GRSR review. It is the first Chinese-designed reactor to have undergone review by the IAEA.

CNNC's assistant president Li Xiaoming told the China Daily newspaper that the IAEA's review of the ACP1000 reached three main conclusions. Firstly, the technology is recognized to be fully compliant with all the safety standards set by the IAEA and that it is suitable to be sold outside of China. Secondly, the ACP1000 design is evolutionary, meaning it is constantly evolving by adding the latest and best technology to existing technology. Thirdly, the design combines passive and active technology, ensuring better safety.

The ACP1000 is derived from the 900 MWe PWRs that China imported from France in the 1990s. The first two ACP1000 units had been planned for units 5 and 6 of the Fuqing nuclear power plant in Fujian province.

In 2012, central planners in Beijing directed CNNC and the other large nuclear builder and operator, China General Nuclear (CGN), to 'rationalise' their reactor programs. This meant CNNC's ACP1000 and CGN's ACPR1000 were 'merged' into one standardised design - the Hualong One.

In fact, each company has its own supply chain and their versions of Hualong One will differ slightly (units built by CGN will use some features from the ACPR1000) but the design is considered to be standardised. It is set for wide deployment in China as well as export to other countries. Some 85% of its components will be made domestically.

Li told the China Daily, "Exporting nuclear technology is of strategic importance to China, and it creates more demand for China's own domestic nuclear supply chain. We look forward to exporting Chinese nuclear technology globally in the near future."

However, he noted that international use of the ACP1000 is still dependent on meeting country-specific standards and requirements, but passing the IAEA safety review will make this process easier.