The Atommash production site (part Rosatom’s mechanical engineering division) has completed welding the upper half of the VVER-1200 reactor for unit 2 of the El Dabaa NPP under construction in Egypt. The casing of the shells of the active zone and flange case have been welded. The process is performed at high temperatures and pressure to achieve high strength of welded joints. Continuous welding under heating lasted 20 days. For two ring seams, almost 3.5 tonnes of wire and 4.5 tonnes of flux were used. To ensure additional strength of the metal, an anti-corrosion surfacing was applied.
“The reactor case is a key element of NPP equipment, the reliability of which determines the life of the station itself,” said Viktor Orlov, Director General of the Central National Northwest branch of NPO TsNIITMASH. “Therefore, based on many years of experience of leading domestic schools and contemporary scientific studies, we are continuously improving metallurgical, welding and alignment technologies used in the manufacture of parts of the reactor. As a result, now the service life of reactors has been increased from 30-40 years for first-generation reactors to 60-80 years for 3+ generation reactors. Now we understand that this is not the limit – new materials in the near future will ensure the life of the NPPs up to 100 years.”
By using innovative structural materials and welding technologies with increased radiation resistance and reducing the number of welds, which are a weak place of any structure, will help increase the service life of Russian NPPs to 100 years. This work is being undertaken as part the complex programme Development of technology, technologies and scientific research in the field of atomic energy use in the Russian Federation for the period until 2030.
El Dabaa NPP will comprise four units with generation III+ VVER-1200 pressurised water reactors. The NPP is being constructed in accordance with contracts that entered into force in 2017. The $30bn project is mainly financed through a $25bn Russian loan. Rosatom will supply nuclear fuel throughout the lifecycle of the plant, arrange for the training of the Egyptian personnel, and assist in the operation and maintenance of the plant for the first 10 years. The reference plant for El Dabaa is the Leningrad-II NPP. Construction of all four units is planned for completion by 2028-2029, and Egypt expects that the NPP will reach full capacity by 2030.
