26 abr 2016 ano - This Chinese Nuclear Plant's Success Is Critical to Westinghouse's Future
Descrição:
he start-up of a nuclear power plant south of Shanghai later this year has a lot riding on it.
It’ll be the first to use a new reactor designed by Westinghouse Electric Co., and its success is critical for the embattled company’s future. Development of the same AP1000 model has been disastrous for the firm in the U.S., leading to bankruptcy and doubts over the future of its owner, Japan’s Toshiba Corp.
If all goes smoothly at the Sanmen facility, the Chinese could unleash a wave of approvals for new reactors. South Africa, India, Mexico and the Czech Republic are among other countries also considering the design, and are more likely to adopt it once China has taken the first, crucial step. That will boost the allure of Westinghouse should it be sold in the restructuring.
The construction of the Sanmen Nuclear Power plant in 2011.Photographer: Wang Kaimin/Imaginechina via AP Photo
“Sanmen AP1000 is a showcase to the worldwide nuclear power industry, and its success will probably trigger a new round of construction,” said Shi Yan, a Shanghai-based utilities analyst at UOB Kay Hian Holdings Ltd. “Everyone wants to build AP1000 reactors, but very few want to be the first building it.”
Read more: Private equity firms are circling Westinghouse amid its restructuring
The reactor is the culmination of decades of research and development at Pennsylvania-based Westinghouse, one of the oldest and most-respected reactor builders. It’s simpler design and safety features are meant to avoid the type of meltdown Japan suffered in 2011. And it’s the only current-generation reactor cleared by U.S. and U.K. regulators, a selling point for countries such as Mexico that say they won’t build a reactor unless it’s been cleared by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
Financial Disaster
But it’s also taken Westinghouse, and its parent, to the brink of disaster. The company filed for bankruptcy last month amid cost overruns and delays related to the construction of four of the units in the U.S., which led to a $6.3 billion writedown at Toshiba. Amid mounting speculation Westinghouse will be put up for sale, the company this week is due to decide on whether to continue with the projects in Georgia and South Carolina.
The Sanmen project in China’s Zhejiang province has not been without challenges. It was scheduled to begin in 2013, but was delayed due to design problems, supply-chain bottlenecks and stricter safety measures after the Fukushima disaster.
It’s now slated to start by the end of the year and Westinghouse’s bankruptcy won’t have a material impact, China’s State Power Investment Corp., the lead developer, said last month. SPIC didn’t respond to requests for comment this week. Fuel will be loaded into the reactor this summer and it’s expected to come online this year, Westinghouse said Wednesday.
China’s waiting for Sanmen to confirm that the AP1000 is safe and economical before going “all in” with more approvals, according to Shi Yan. The nation has 21 reactors under construction, of which four are AP1000s, according to data compiled by the World Nuclear Association. More than half of the 41 further planned units are pegged to be AP1000s, WNA data shows.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-26/nuclear-reactor-treasure-seen-buried-in-wreck-of-westinghouse
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