OREANDA-NEWS. October 5, 2012.  On Thursday Russia and Ukraine started building a nuclear fuel fabrication plant in the village of Smolino, Kirovograd Region, an Interfax correspondent reported from the plant ground-breaking ceremony.

The ceremony that starts pre-construction works on the future plant site was attended by Ukraine’s Prime Minister Nikolay Azarov, Minister of Energy and Coal Industry Yuri Boiko and Director General of ROSATOM Sergey Kirienko.

The nuclear fuel fabrication plant in Ukraine is built in the framework of Russian-Ukrainian joint venture (JV) where 50% plus 1 share is owned by Ukraine’s State Concern Nuclear Fuel and 50% minus 1 share is with the Russian JSC TVEL (fuel company of ROSATOM).

According to the feasibility study of the project approved by the Ukrainian Cabinet in June 2012, the project total cost will be USD 462.5 Million. Of this amount, some USD 324.5 Million will be spent to build the plant’s Phase One, which is planned to accomplish by 2015.

The project will be financed out of a loan (70%) and by Ukrainian and Russian shareholders (30%). In addition, JSC TVEL is to give JV a loan of USD 3 Million for priority measures.

The full-scale construction on the site is reported to start after the project documents have been drafted and approved. Earlier, an Interfax’s source said this could happen “in several months.” The plant architect general is the Ukrainian institute UkrNIPIIpromtekhnologii, but the Russian JSC GSPI (part of ROSATOM) is responsible for technological sections of the project.

The plant capacity will be 800 fuel assemblies a year. The facility will fabricate TVSA assemblies and their versions. In particular, Russia is negotiating with Ukraine on introduction of TVSA-12 fuel at Ukrainian NPPs and plans its first deliveries to start in 2014.

The future plant is planned to meet all Ukraine’s needs in nuclear fuel, which is supplied by JSC TVEL as nearly a monopolist vendor. Moreover, in future the plant’s products can be supplied to third countries. In the framework of the project the Russian party has undertaken to continuously render uranium enrichment services to the plant.