Unit 5 of Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant will be shut down on 9 May for its scheduled annual maintenance and refuelling with American nuclear fuel, it was announced during the annual report of the Nuclear Regulatory Agency.
The maintenance is expected to be completed by mid-June, when the next batch of fuel assemblies produced by Westinghouse will be loaded.
In 2024, a four-year phased transition to the new nuclear fuel began. By 2027, the reactor’s entire core is expected to be fully loaded with American fuel.
For nearly two years now, Unit 5 at Kozloduy has been operating with a combination of both Russian and American fuel.
Tsonko Bachiyski, Chairman of the Nuclear Regulatory Agency, said: “Thanks to the good organisation of the licensing process for the new nuclear fuel for Unit 5 of Kozloduy NPP, we are the first country in the European Union to have licensed or authorised a new type of fuel different from the original.
At present, all systems monitoring the condition of the reactor core show that there are no issues with the fuel. During previous maintenance outages, direct inspections of the fuel assemblies showed no problems—neither deformation nor any other defects.
We expect this year to be the same, but we will know for certain after mid-May, when the reactor is inspected.”
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