The Olkiluoto nuclear power station in Finland. Units-1 and -2 in the foreground. Source: TVO Westinghouse Electric Company on Monday signed a long-term contract with the Finnish nuclear power company Teollisuuden Voima Oyj for deliveries of control rods to their two boiling water reactors (BWRs), Olkiluoto-1 and -2, until 2038.

Westinghouse said TVO will uses Westinghouse’s optimised CR 99+ design, which is equipped with additional neutron absorption capacity, resulting in lower costs, decreased control rod handling and reduced active waste.

This contract follows a long-term BWR fuel agreement between TVO and Westinghouse announced in October 2019 for Westinghouse’s Triton11 fuel design to be used at Olkiluoto-1 and -2.

The control rods are being delivered from the Westinghouse fuel manufacturing facility in Västerås, Sweden, which will also provide fuel and engineering support to Olkiluoto-1 and -2.

Westinghouse also announced it had signed a long-term contract with TVO for in-service inspections of all three of their units: the Olkiluoto-1 and -2 BWRs and the Olkiluoto-3 EPR pressurised water reactor, which is under construction and scheduled to begin commercial operation in March 2021.

Under the contract, Westinghouse will deliver advanced inspections for several major components, including primary tubing and nozzles of the steam generator at Olkiluoto-3, and inspections of the reactor pressure vessels and internals at Olkiluoto-1 and -2.