Rosatom, the atomic energy corporation in Russia, has launched the industrial production of MOX fuel (mixed-oxide fuel) for fast reactors at the Mining and Chemical Combine (MCC), part of the ‘Rosatom’ network.

The production of MOX fuel for fast reactors is designated within the framework of the federal programme titled “New-generation nuclear power technologies”, said a statement from the company.  

The production schedule for the BN-800 fast reactor needs is currently in the planning stages. It has been reported that the minimum controlled output power (ISU) has been reached at the BN-800 and work is underway to increase capacity in accordance with the regulations, it added.

Speaking during the launch ceremony, Rosatom CEO Sergei Kirienko claimed that Russia has moved ahead of the US in the MOX-fuel production technology.

He added: “If you calculate the amount that we have spent on this over the last 2.5 years, it works up to only 9 billion roubles ($139.8 million).”

Earlier in August, the Mining and Chemical Combine (MCC) at Zheleznogorsk produced the first fuel assembly (FA) with uranium pellets of MOX fuel, said the statement.

MCC, established in June 1993, is the leading Russian company providing the full technology complex for spent nuclear (SNF) fuel disposal. The main services provided by MCC include SNF transfer and storage, MOX fuel plant construction, and the construction of a research and exhibition centre for SNF reprocessing. – TradeArabia News Service