Nuclearelectrica, KHNP launch tritium removal project in Romania

"The tritium removal facility will remove tritium from the plant, leading to increased environmental protection, fully in line with Nuclearelectrica’s and Europe’s ESG objectives," the two companies said in a joint press release on Monday.

Tritium is a rare and radioactive isotope of hydrogen.

Nuclearelectrica and KHNP will base the development of the Cernavoda Detritiation Facility (CTRF) on a Romanian technology developed by the National Research and Development Institute for Cryogenic and Isotope Technologies (ICSI) Ramnicu Valcea. Once completed, the CTRF will allow Romania to become a European centre for the production and export of tritium, which is a candidate fuel for future fusion reactors, as per the statement.

Last year, Nuclearelectrica signed a 260 billion won ($188.6 million/175.4 million euro) contract with KHNP for the construction of a TRF. In December, Nuclearelectrica borrowed 145 million euro from the European Investment Bank to finance the construction of this facility.

Earlier this year, Romania's energy ministry and South Korea's commerce, industry, and energy ministry signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for cooperation in the area of nuclear power, according to a press release issued by the Romanian energy ministry in April. The objective of the MoU, which had been drafted in March, was to create a framework for the exchange of best practices in the nuclear field and the coordination of energy policies between the two states.

In the first trimester of 2024, Nuclearelectrica booked a preliminary net profit of 563.3 ($121.7 million/113.2 million euro) million lei, down by an annual 26.5%, on total revenues of 1.173 billion lei, it said in an unaudited quarterly financial report issued last month.

Blue-chip Nuclearelectrica's shares traded 0.11% higher at 45.3 lei as at 0900 CET on June 12 on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

(1 euro = 4.9767 lei)