Rosatom starts installation of 4th-gen reactor

24 Jan 2024 CW Team

The steel reactor baseplate with the total weight of 165 tons has been installed. The workers have also loaded into the reactor shaft the first part of the reactor vessel ? the lower tier of the containment.

The containment structure is the outer part of the reactor vessel. It provides retention of heat-insulating concrete, forming an additional localizing barrier of protection, which surrounds the boundary of the coolant circuit. On its surface, the temperature should not exceed 60 degrees Celsius, and the radiation background is actually equal to the natural background.

A 300 MW NPP powered by the lead-cooled BREST-OD-300 fast reactor, based on the principles of ?natural safety?, is the key element of the Pilot demonstration energy complex, which is under construction on the site of the Siberian Chemical Combine in Seversk, an enterprise of TVEL Fuel Company of Rosatom. The PDEC facilities are developed under Rosatom?s strategic ?Proryv? project (?the Breakthrough?). In addition to the power unit, it also includes facilities of the on-site closed nuclear fuel cycle ? a unit for the fabrication of uranium-plutonium nitride fuel, as well as a unit for reprocessing of irradiated fuel.

?We have started installation of the world?s first lead-cooled fast reactor, the fourth generation reactor BREST-OD-300. Unlike traditional light-water VVER thermal reactors, BREST has an integral layout. Its vessel is not an all-metal structure like the VVER, but a metal-concrete structure with metal cavities to accommodate the primary circuit equipment. The space between the cavities should be gradually filled with concrete filler during construction. In addition, the BREST vessel is larger in size, it can be delivered only in parts, and the final assembly is possible only at the PDEC construction site,? commented Vadim Lemekhov, Chief Designer of the BREST-OD-300 reactor unit and General Designer of the ?Breakthrough? project team.

Rosatom has achieved a landmark milestone in construction of a power unit with the innovative fast neutron BREST-OD-300 reactor on the site of the Pilot demonstration energy complex (PDEC) in Seversk, Tomsk Region (West Siberia). The steel reactor baseplate with the total weight of 165 tons has been installed. The workers have also loaded into the reactor shaft the first part of the reactor vessel ? the lower tier of the containment. The containment structure is the outer part of the reactor vessel. It provides retention of heat-insulating concrete, forming an additional localizing barrier of protection, which surrounds the boundary of the coolant circuit. On its surface, the temperature should not exceed 60 degrees Celsius, and the radiation background is actually equal to the natural background. A 300 MW NPP powered by the lead-cooled BREST-OD-300 fast reactor, based on the principles of ?natural safety?, is the key element of the Pilot demonstration energy complex, which is under construction on the site of the Siberian Chemical Combine in Seversk, an enterprise of TVEL Fuel Company of Rosatom. The PDEC facilities are developed under Rosatom?s strategic ?Proryv? project (?the Breakthrough?). In addition to the power unit, it also includes facilities of the on-site closed nuclear fuel cycle ? a unit for the fabrication of uranium-plutonium nitride fuel, as well as a unit for reprocessing of irradiated fuel. ?We have started installation of the world?s first lead-cooled fast reactor, the fourth generation reactor BREST-OD-300. Unlike traditional light-water VVER thermal reactors, BREST has an integral layout. Its vessel is not an all-metal structure like the VVER, but a metal-concrete structure with metal cavities to accommodate the primary circuit equipment. The space between the cavities should be gradually filled with concrete filler during construction. In addition, the BREST vessel is larger in size, it can be delivered only in parts, and the final assembly is possible only at the PDEC construction site,? commented Vadim Lemekhov, Chief Designer of the BREST-OD-300 reactor unit and General Designer of the ?Breakthrough? project team.

Equipment

12 Dec 2025

Schwing Stetter India Unveils New Innovations at Excon 2025

Schwing Stetter India unveiled more than 20 new machines at Excon 2025, marking one of its most significant showcases and introducing several India-first technologies to the construction equipment sector. The company launched the country’s first 56-metre boom pump designed and manufactured in India, the first fully electric truck mixer, the first CNG mixer variant and the first hybrid boom pump. Executives said the launch portfolio was engineered to support India’s move toward faster, greener and more vertically oriented infrastructure through advanced engineering, clean-energy solutions a..

Infrastructure Energy

12 Dec 2025

SEPC Resolves Hindustan Copper Dispute, Wins Rs 725 Mn Order

Engineering, procurement and construction firm SEPC Ltd has recently settled a dispute with Hindustan Copper Ltd (HCL) and secured a mining infrastructure order valued at Rs 725 million from the state-owned company. SEPC informed the stock exchanges that it has executed a settlement deed with HCL, bringing closure to all inter-se claims and counterclaims arising from arbitration proceedings. As part of the settlement, SEPC will receive Rs 304.5 million as full and final payment, marking the resolution of all pending disputes between the two entities. The company also stated that Hindustan Co..

Infrastructure Energy

12 Dec 2025

20% Ethanol Blending Cuts India’s CO2 Emissions by 73.6 Mn Tonnes

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari recently said that India has reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 73.6 million metric tonnes due to the adoption of 20 per cent ethanol blending in petrol. He made the statement while replying to supplementary questions during the Question Hour in the Lok Sabha. Describing ethanol as a green fuel, the minister said it plays a key role in reducing pollution while also supporting higher incomes for farmers. He underlined that ethanol blending contributes both to environmental sustainability and rural economic growth. Nitin Gadkari also po..