Romania’s Feldioara to deliver uranium dioxide to Argentina

Cosmin Ghita, General Manager of Nuclearelectrica, said: "The fact that we are delivering nuclear raw materials for the first time to another country that owns and operates pressurised heavy water reactors is a source of pride and achievement for Nuclearelectrica and its subsidiary, FPCU Feldioara, but also for the development of the Romanian fuel cycle, given that Nuclearelectrica took over the processing assets in December 2022, operationalised Feldioara in 2023 and continues to modernise. Such an agreement is a confirmation of the quality of the raw material processed at Feldioara."

Gelu Agafiel Maracineanu, General Manager of FPCU Feldioara, said that as well as supplying the raw material needed to manufacture fuel assemblies at Pitesti for units 1 and 2 at Cernavoda Nuclear Power plant, "we have set out to develop, expand our supply network and offer the nuclear fuel cycle in Romania a new dimension: the international one".

Background

In 2021 Romania's competition commission cleared Nuclearelectrica's purchase of the uranium processing line assets of Compania Nationala a Uraniului (CNU) at Feldioara - a state company that manages Romania's uranium resources and reserves, historically mining uranium at Crucea-Botusana and refining it at Feldioara before supplying it to the Pitesti facility where it was used in the manufacture of fuel bundles for Nuclearelectrica's CANDU reactors at the Cernavoda power plant.

Nuclearelectrica said that its aim was to "preserve and develop the integrated Romanian nuclear fuel cycle, the integrated production capacities … ensuring the production of fuel assemblies and the optimal operation of FCN Pitești and CNE Cernavodă, at an advantageous transaction cost".

It says that two years after work undertaken to become operational "Nuclearelectrica, through its subsidiary FPCU Feldioara, will deliver uranium dioxide internationally, a variable of development and diversification that will add value and financial benefits".

Cernavoda is the only nuclear power plant in Romania and consists of two 650 MWe Candu reactors. Unit 1 went into commercial operation in 1996 and unit 2 in 2007. Candu units are pressurised heavy water reactors designed to operate for 30 years, with a further 30 years available subject to refurbishment.  Argentina has three operable nuclear power reactors, all pressurised heavy water reactors, including a CANDU unit at Embalse.