Japan’s IHI has started shipping the containment vessel bottom heads for the Vogtle AP1000 in the USA. It is the first time in 30 years that IHI has shipped nuclear power generation machinery to the USA.

IHI was awarded the contract for two containment vessels from CB&I in January 2009. The CVBHs, produced at IHI works in Yokohama, Japan will be delived within five shipments per unit, as separate plate components due to their size.The two steel containment vessels are each more than 40 meters in diameter, over 66 meters high, and approximately 4,000 tons in weight.

The first shipment set sail for the USA on 25 July 2010.

The components will be used at the two-unit Vogtle nuclear power plant planned by Southern Company subsidary Georgia Power. Ownership of the reactors will be split among Georgia Power, Oglethorpe Power Corporation (30%), the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia (22.7%) and Dalton Utilities (1.6%).


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