The Doicești-Șotânga 80 MW photovoltaic park has been commissioned.  The investment is part of the Doicești Energy Complex, which will include the SMR Power Plant and the Doicești Photovoltaic Park

Nine O’Clock exclusive!

The new Doicești – Șotânga photovoltaic park with an installed capacity of 80 MW, part of the Doicești energy complex, which will also include the first small modular reactor (SMR) plant in Europe, the second after the USA, has been commissioned. The Doicești power complex will demonstrate the complementarity of the two clean energy sources – nuclear and renewable – and will represent not only an optimal production capacity, with the possibility to vary production, but also a new vision of generation sources for the national energy system of the future.

The Doicești power complex is a sustainable solution that is already bringing back into use a large area of the ash deposits from the former Doicești coal-fired power plant by using them for the photovoltaic park. In the future, the whole site will be reused for the operation of the small modular reactor power plant, an example for the reintroduction and reuse of former coal-fired power plants for energy production, this time clean.

The new park produces green energy through more than 123,000 bifacial monocrystalline panels with a 25-year lifetime, is built on an area of more than 115 hectares and has an installed capacity of 80 MW. The photovoltaic park is connected to the National Energy System through the two 110/20 kV transformer stations Șotânga and Doicești.

The energy produced in the photovoltaic plants will provide the necessary power for all the equipment and machinery used in the execution of the future Doicești SMR Plant, as well as the energy needed to ensure the internal services of the SMR Plant after its commissioning.

For the park site, work was carried out to stabilise the ash deposits resulting from coal mining, in compliance with the environmental protection legislation of the National Agency for Environmental Protection (NAEP). In the process, the standards for isolating the former deposits were respected, using biodegradable geotextiles and a layer of earth to prevent the ash debris from coming into contact with the environment.

As the SMR project matures, the photovoltaic park will become part of RoPower, the project company for the development of SMR technology in Romania.

“The nuclear – photovoltaic energy complex at Doicești marks another milestone in the planned path of the project which, in addition to ensuring green energy and safety in supplying the site, brings more confidence to the investors of this project,“ said Teofil Mureșan, CEO E-INFRA.

“The Doicești Energy Complex project is an example of national and international collaboration to develop a future model for clean, sustainable energy generation that offers multiple benefits for the community and the economic-industrial environment. The new energy complex will not only demonstrate the complementarity of these two clean energy sources, nuclear and photovoltaic, but will also bring multiple socio-economic benefits to the area. Through access to a clean, safe, reliable, and efficient source of energy, a real industrial hub will be developed in the Doicești area, with the potential to attract new investors to the area. Romania has almost 27 years of experience in safe nuclear operation, we are ranked 1st and 3rd in terms of capacity factor out of over 440 reactors in operation globally, we have an experienced regulator and an industry ready to contribute to the development of the small modular reactor project. We have all the assets to develop a safe, efficient project that will put Romania, and therefore Doicești, on the world map of future energy projects,” said Cosmin Ghiță, CEO S.N. Nuclearelectrica SA.

“We are working closely with the authorities and the local community to ensure a transparent and sustainable development of the Doicești site, with the aim to transform the area into a value-added energy hub for the community. The energy produced in the photovoltaic plants will contribute, together with the energy produced by the future SMR power plant in DOICEȘTI, to the socio-economic development of the area, to the well-being of the population, as well as to the increase of Romania’s energy security and the reduction of CO2 emissions,“ said Marius Dănilă, CEO RoPower.

About RoPower

RoPower Nuclear SA, a company established by Nuclearelectrica SA and Nova Power & Gas SRL, is the project company for the development of the Small Modular Reactors (SMR) project at Doicești.

RoPower combines the expertise of the two parent shareholders and aims, together with NuScale’s partners, to successfully implement the Small Modular Reactors on the site of the former Doicești Thermal Power Plant, complying with the highest national and international standards and regulations.

The site of the former Doicești thermal power plant was selected as a candidate location following preliminary studies conducted with $1.2 million funds received from the USTDA in early 2021. The studies looked at potential locations in Romania for siting small modular reactors and various advanced SMR technologies. The study is entitled: “Small Modular Reactor (SMR) Long-Term Development Plan: Siting Selection and Technology Study” and is available for application to USTDA, the project funder – https://www.ustda.gov/ustda-library/

Currently, RoPower, the project company for the development of the SMR power plant in Romania, and NuScale are carrying out the first phase of the FEED (Front-End Engineering and Design) study, an extensive study to verify in detail the preferred candidate site at Doicești. This study consists of a series of initial engineering and design activities and studies, technical analyses of the former Doicești site, timetable and cost estimates specific to the project in Romania. The FEED study also applies the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) recommendations, following the IAEA Site and External Events Design (SEED) mission, carried out in August 2022, at the request of Nuclearelectrica.

About Nuclearelectrica

The National Company “Nuclearelectrica” SA is the national Romanian company which produces electricity, heat and nuclear fuel operating under the authority of the Romanian Ministry of Energy, with the Romanian state holding 82.49% of shares and other shareholders holding 17.50%, after the listing of the company at the stock exchange in 2013.

SNN operates through Cernavoda NPP two CANDU nuclear units, which are two of the most high-performance units among the more than 400 nuclear plants in the world, a nuclear fuel factory and it has completed integrated fuel cycle through the procurement of a uranium concentrate processing line, in order to support the long-term investment projects of the company.

Nuclearelectrica has a major role at the national level, contributing by more than 18% of the nuclear energy in the total energy production and by 33% in the total CO2-free energy production in Romania.

www.nuclearelectrica.ro

About Nova Power & Gas

Nova Power & Gas is a privately owned company in Romania, active in the electricity and gas market since 2007. In addition to being a distributor and supplier of electricity and natural gas, the company is a green energy producer, with a focus on the development of renewable power plants. Nova Power & Gas is a member of E-INFRA, a Romanian infrastructure group specialized in energy, civil and telecommunications infrastructure projects, with over 26 years of successful experience in delivering large-scale projects, both nationally and internationally. E-INFRA Group has been involved in the development and implementation of major infrastructure projects, demonstrating high quality results.

www.vreaulanova.ro

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