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Nuclearelectrica bought 120 tonnes of sinterable uranium dioxide powder from the Canadian company Cameco
Nuclearelectrica, the operator of Romania's two nuclear reactors, recently bought 120 tonnes of sinterable uranium dioxide powder from the Canadian company Cameco, which covers the fuel needs for six months, Nuclearelectrica CEO Daniela Lulache announced in a press conference on Monday.
The only other qualified supplier of UO2 is Romania's National Uranium Company (CNU). Cameco's price was significantly lower, namely 429.47 lei per kilogram of uranium content. The figure is the Romanian currency equivalent of the actual price in U.S. dollars, at an unspecified exchange rate; the National Bank of Romania announced on Monday a market exchange rate of 4.0590 lei/dollar. Lulache mentioned that Cameco agreed to disclose the price.
According to the CEO, Nuclearelectrica started a supplier qualification procedure this April for a term of 2-4 years, to secure its fuel on long term and avoid relying on a single supplier. Both CNU and Cameco were already qualified. Other international uranium oxide producers were interested, but only one filed the necessary documents within the due deadline, and later failed to prove it meets the product specifications. Lulache said the procedure will be resumed in the near future.
Nuclearelectrica will also reimburse to CNU a warranty of 8.9 million lei under a 2014 contract, as a prejudice for 240 tonnes of UO2 no longer exists after the latest purchase, and the probability of damages for 54 tonnes still remaining is low, Lulache added.