On Thursday, May 16, 2024, the senior management of the El-Dabaa NPP construction project led by Dr. Amged El-Wakeel, Board Chairman of the Nuclear Power Plants Authority of the Arab Republic of Egypt and Mr. Andrey Petrov, the First Deputy Director General for Nuclear Energy of the Rosatom State Corporation - ASE JSC President, undertook a working visit to the NPP site as part of the implementation of the El-Dabaa NPP construction project. The visit took place to check the progress of the project work in the wake of the fact that the first tier of the inner containment has been installed into the design position in the reactor building at the first power unit of the El-Dabaa NPP The work was conducted by ASE JSC specialists, the project's general contractor, under the supervision of the Nuclear Power Plants Authority; the completion of the work was marked by the achievement of one of this year’s key milestones at the first power unit.
“We come regularly to check the progress of work at the El-Dabaa NPP construction site, and today’s visit paid by Mr. Andrey Petrov and the Egyptian and Russian sides’ leaders is confined to one of this year’s major events, i.e. completion of the installation of the first tier of the inner containment into its design position in the reactor building of the first power unit. Many other key events are scheduled for the current year, that began with a ceremony of the first concreting at Unit 4 and laying a memorial stone for the project in January. The event was attended by Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, President of the Arab Republic of Egypt, and Vladimir Putin, President of the Russian Federation, who watched the ceremony via videoconference. The participation of the two presidents provided a telling evidence of the support lent by both countries’ political leaders to the largest national El Dabaa NPP construction project which is the most audacious challenge of this century,” said Prof. Dr. Amged El-Wakeel.
“We have recovered momentum in 2023 and I have no doubt that it will only mount this year. Right now, the work is underway at the site at more than 130 facilities. More than 20,000 people are working at the El-Dabaa nuclear power plant construction site. It is a great pleasure to acknowledge the close interface between the Russian and Egyptian sides, and it is hardly possible to talk about the successful implementation of the project, if not for this interaction. There is no doubt that owing to such a high level of cooperation, we will be able to achieve Egypt’s long-nurtured dream of building the most up-to-date and safe nuclear power plant in the world,” Mr. Andrey Petrov, the First Deputy Director General for Nuclear Energy of the Rosatom State Corporation - ASE JSC President pointed out.
The visit ended by the Egypt and the Russian sides’ meeting to discuss various trends of the project development. The parties discussed the current progress of work and ways to provide support to the working groups as part of the project, to achieve key milestones of this year that are to be implemented owing to the beneficial and fruitful cooperation of the Egyptian and Russian teams.
The internal containment of the reactor building consists of 12 segments each of them being 60-80 tons. The works on the containment installing in the design position began in March last year. The internal containment of the reactor building is one of the major engineering components of the power unit that are produced at the El-Dabaa site and guarantee the necessary nuclear safety parameters. The internal containment having a cylindrical reinforced concrete structure with a hemispherical dome to house the nuclear reactor and the NPP primary circuit equipment, will take a final shape after the installation works have been completed. The internal containment of the reactor building is a key factor in preventing a leakage of any radioactive substances into the environment.
Background of El-Dabaa NPP Project
The El-Dabaa NPP is the first NPP in Egypt. It is being built in the city of El-Dabaa, in the Matruh province on the Mediterranean coast, approximately 300 km. north-west from Cairo. The El-Dabaa NPP consists of four 1200 MW power units equipped with Russian VVER-1200 pressurized water reactors of the latest third generation; these reactors are state-of-the art technologies that have been successfully operated at reference NPPs. There are four nuclear power units of this generation currently in operation, namely two reactors of the Novovoronezh NPP and two reactors of the Leningrad NPP; moreover, there are two power units of the Belarus NPP outside Russia.
El-Dabaa NPP is being as part of a package of contracts which entered into force on December 11, 2017. The Russian side will not only build the nuclear power plant, but also supply nuclear fuel throughout the entire El-Dabaa NPP operating life in accordance with its contractual obligations. The Russian party is expected as well to assist Egyptian partners in training NPP operating personnel at the stage of operation and maintenance during the first ten years of the NPP operation. In addition, the Russian side will build special storage facilities and provide special containers for storing spent nuclear fuel under a separate contract.