Russia’s NA Dollezhal Scientific Research & Design Institute of Power Engineering (NIKIET, part of Rosatom) has completed the development of design documentation for the Shelf-M reactor for a low-power NPP (ASMM) at the preliminary design stage. Specialists have selected the main technical solutions and structural elements, worked out the structural and functional schemes of the product, and also completed calculations and a feasibility study. In August NIKIET won a tender to develop a technical project for the Shelf-M microreactor by the end of 2025.
The Institute has now completed the first stage of development of the Shelf-M reactor facility and has presented the preliminary design to Rosatom, including the possible characteristics of potential sites, operational, regulatory and legal aspects,” said Denis Kulikov, NIKIET’s Chief Designer of Reactors for Small Power Nuclear Power Plants. The next stage will be the development of technical design documentation and the conduct of detailed R&D to substantiate the correctness of the design decisions and the safety of the plant, which will be completed before the end of 2024.
The pilot project of the ASMM with a Shelf-M reactor facility is planned to be implemented in 2030 with the commissioning of the station into commercial operation at one of the sites selected in 2023 in remote regions of the Russian Federation. This is part of federal project "New nuclear power, including small reactors for remote areas".
The ASMM is designed for local electricity supply to facilities in remote areas with an undeveloped power grid. The planned installed capacity is up to 10MWe. The estimated service life of the station is 60 years with refuelling every eight years.
Image: The Shelf-M reactor concept (courtesy of Rosatom)
