THE Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) says that the lapsed nuclear cooperation agreement between South Africa and the United States poses no immediate crisis for the country.
South Africa and the US signed a Nuclear Cooperation Agreement on the Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy in 1995, which came into effect on 4 December 1997 for a period of 25 years.
The agreement expired on 4 December 2022, causing some panic among South Africans and raising questions about whether or not the country’s only nuclear power station – Koeberg – would be able to run without Eskom being able to secure fuel.
The Koeberg Nuclear Power Station is currently operating at half capacity after its first unit was pulled offline in December for maintenance. The station is currently the most reliable energy producer in Eskom’s fleet and is having its lifespan extended by 20 years.
Koeberg unit 1 being offline – removing almost 1,000MW from the grid – exacerbates South Africa’s ongoing load shedding crisis, contributing to the current shortfall of generating capacity. However, the necessary maintenance on the station can in no way be delayed or hurried along.
The first unit is expected to return to service in the middle of the year, after which the second unit will be taken offline for the same purpose, and will remain offline for the rest of the year.
The DMRE said that Koeberg is currently being supplied with nuclear fuel from Westinghouse Electric Company LLC from the USA to load Unit 1 and Framatome from France to load Unit 2.
As a result of the lapsed agreement, the USA National Regulatory Commission has informed Westinghouse that it has temporarily withdrawn its authorization to supply Koeberg with nuclear fuel.
The department noted, however, that the nuclear fuel for the current loading cycle that is in progress has already been purchased and delivered, and fuel for the next cycle is only expected to be delivered by Westinghouse in early 2024.
“Therefore, there is no immediate crisis which could exacerbate the load shedding from Eskom due to Koeberg Nuclear Power Plant,” it said.
However, the department did say that an urgent resolution is needed to allow Westinghouse to provide fuel supply. It said that the South African government initiated negotiations for the conclusion of a new standardized Nuclear Cooperation Agreement with the USA in 2018.
These negotiations are ongoing and the parties have resolved to expedite the process, it said.
Addressing the media on Thursday (2 February), Eskom said that South Africa has more than a year to secure a new agreement with the US, but even failing that, there are options available to source fuel from other certified vendors.
If push comes to shove, Westinghouse can also get one-off approvals to supply nuclear fuel to Eskom without a long-term agreement being in place, it said.
Business Tech
