SA's first new nuclear plant to be operational by mid-2015
State-owned power supplier Eskom has set June 30, 2015, as the date that it wants to have its first new nuclear reactor up-and-running by, and hoped to commission new reactors at intervals of six to twelve months thereafter, an official said on Monday.
In September, the firm said that it had short-listed French nuclear giant Areva, and international nuclear-technology group Westinghouse Electric Company as potential builders for what would be South Africa's first nuclear power plant in more than 20 years.
In fact, Areva built the country's only nuclear plant, Koeberg, which was at one of the three sites where Eskom was considering building the new power station.
Meanwhile, Westinghouse on Monday launched its South African operation under the name Westinghouse Electric South Africa, after it had finalised its acquisition of South African company IST Nuclear for an amount it did not disclose.
Eskom technical strategy manager Phumzile Tshelane said that the power company hoped to have a contract signed with one of the two nuclear technology firms by the end of 2008.
It would be meeting with them both before the end of 2007 for negotiations, and was aiming to have a business case completed by March next year, he stated.
The negotiations would include critical aspects such as localisation, and possible financial benefits of increasing the order to include more than one nuclear power plant.
The nuclear plant would have a capacity of between 3 200 MW and 3 300 MW, depending on the technology chosen.
Eskom had indicated that it was looking to build as many as five nuclear power stations by 2025 and, not only would it make sense to standardise its new nuclear plants, but ordering more than one from a company could offer savings, and ensure that the reactors come on stream in time.
Speaking on the sidelines of a conference in Broederstroom, outside Johannesburg, Tshelane said that Eskom hoped to have the contract for the new power plant signed by the end of 2008.
Further, it wanted the first reactor finished by June 30, 2015, he said, with a new nuclear reactor being added to the national power grid every six to twelve months thereafter.
However, this would largely depend on Areva's or Westinghouse's capacity, Tshelane added.
Tshelane said that it was too early to put a price tag on such a plant. However, it was widely understood that a plant the size that Eskom was looking at would cost in excess of R100-billion.
Eskom has a stated ambition of installing 20 000 MW of nuclear power as part of a bigger 40 000-MW expansion programme over the next two decades.
