OREANDA-NEWS. November 17, 2010. The official ceremony on the occasion of completion the project for BN-350 spent fuel packaging and disposal of specialized transport containers with spent fuel (overpacks) for long-term storage was held. The experts from USA, Great Britain, special IAEA representatives, members of Mangistau Regional Akimat, Kazatomprom, mass-media and the utility staff participated in this ceremony, reported the press-centre of KASE.

BN-350 reactor commissioned in Aktau in 1972 is the first in the world and only one pilot commercial fast breeder reactor in Kazakhstan. In spite of the fact  that reactor  has 20 years lifetime it has been operated for 27 years providing population of Mangistau region and industrial enterprises with electric energy, water and heat supply. In 1999 the reactor was shutdown and the operations for its decommissioning were started up. Safety of spent fuel used in the reactor is an essential part of BN-350 decommissioning project as approved by government authorities of the Republic of Kazakhstan.

This project was aimed at packaging and loading of BN-350 spent fuel into special transport containers for storage. As the most significant aspect it was ensuring of safety during spent fuel transportation and storage according to the rules and criteria common at the territory of Kazakhstan that was directly supervised by IAEA representatives.

The process of spent fuel handling consists of two stages. The first stage was implemented during the period of December, 1998, to June, 2001. It included the activity for packaging of spent fuel assemblies in special sealed six- and four place containers. As a result 479 containers with spent fuel were packed.

The second stage included placement of BN-350 spent fuel for long-term storage in metal-and-concrete containers of dual purpose used both as a base element of overpack and as a storage container. The transport container was manufactured in accordance with the rules and regulations in the field of nuclear energy use and IAEA recommendations.

One more stage is the so called an intermediate stage when the spent fuel is temporary stored in transport containers at the special open ground of MAEC-Kazatomprom before its disposal for long-term storage. The containers from the plant are loaded in wagons and disposed for long-term storage to Baikal-1 site in Kurchatov town.

All operations for handling of spent fuel were done upon thorough analysis and calculations basing on the developed programs containing regulatory provisions, procedure and regimes of technological operations and storing of spent fuel which provide unconditional security of personnel, population and environment at normal storage functioning and in case of any possible emergency situation.

Thus the implementation of this project allowed keeping of BN-350 reactor in nuclear secure state. Kazakhstan meets all commitments with respect of reactor decommissioning.

The Project has been carried out on multilateral basis: financing and technical assistance was rendered by US Department of Energy, US Department of State, Service Center of National Nuclear Security Administration of US Department of Energy, Safeguards and control was provided by IAEA and by Ministry of Industry and New Technologies of the Republic of Kazakhstan, Institute of Atomic Energy under National Nuclear Center of Kazakhstan, MAEC-Kazatomprom from Kazakhstan side and by Medium-duty Engineering Design Bureau JSC, JSC "PO "SEVMASH", JSC "Energotex", Russian Federal Nuclear Center from the Russian side.