21 Dec (NucNet): State-owned utility Eskom has released a request for information (RFI) related to plans in South Africa to build new nuclear power reactors. Eskom said the RFI is part of an “information-gathering exercise” related to nuclear project capacities and costs, proposed financing solutions and localisation opportunities. The information will also be used to supplement Eskom’s response to the government’s draft integrated resource plan (IRP), which was published in November 2016 for public comment. The IRP sets long-term goals for electricity planning. According to a draft energy plan released alongside the IRP, South Africa is planning to have its second commercial nuclear reactor unit online by 2037. Under the government’s proposed timeline, a new nuclear power plant is expected to begin commercial operation in 2037, with a total 20,385 MW of nuclear energy added to the national grid by 2050. The government had previously said it wanted to generate 9,600 MW of energy from as many as eight reactors that should begin operating from 2023 and be completed by 2029, with price estimates ranging from $37bn (€34.8bn) to $100bn (€94bn). Eskom operates the country’s only existing commercial nuclear station, the two-unit Koeberg, and has said 2026 is a feasible first date to deliver the first new unit.
