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Plant was first in country to generate energy The Agesta nuclear power station in Sweden was shut down permanently in 1974. Courtesy Holder Ellgaard/Wikipedia US-based Westinghouse Electric Company has signed a contract with Swedish utility Vattenfall to segment the nuclear reactor at its Agesta nuclear power plant near Stockholm.

Under the terms of the contract, Westinghouse will plan, design and manufacture the tools for segmentation and perform the site work. This includes the underwater mechanical cutting of the reactor vessel and its internal components and packing the pieces in containers for Vattenfall to remove from site.

Agesta, a 10-MW pressurised heavy water reactor unit, was Sweden’s first energy generating nuclear reactor. It began commercial operation in 1964 and was in operation for 10 years before ceasing operation in 1974. Since the shutdown, limited service has been carried out to maintain the necessary basic functions. The nuclear fuel and the heavy water were removed from the plant after the shutdown.

In December 2019, the Swedish Radiation Safety Authority approved a safety report for the dismantling and demolition of the plant.

According to Vattenfall, which part-owns the plant, major investments would have been needed to meet increased security requirements to keep it operating. Agesta had also become obsolete when the 881-MW Ringhals-1 boiling water reactor unit began commercial operation in January 1976.

Date: Tuesday, 22 December 2020
Original article: nucnet.org/news/westinghouse-sings-contract-for-reactor-segmentation-at-agesta-12-1-2020