Russia’s only floating nuclear power plant has received a fresh shipment of nuclear fuel as part of a scheduled refuelling programme, according to state nuclear company Rosatom.
The fuel is destined for Unit 1 of the Akademik Lomonosov, which operates in Russia’s remote Chukotka region in the country’s far north-east, across the Bering Strait from Alaska.
The fuel assemblies were manufactured at Rosatom’s ELEMASH Machine-Building Plant in Elektrostal. The company said the assemblies passed acceptance tests and technical inspections before being certified by the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping.
The Akademik Lomonosov is powered by two KLT-40S reactors, a marine reactor design derived from technology used in Russia’s icebreaker fleet. Each reactor has a generating capacity of about 35MW.
Unit 1 underwent its first refuelling in late 2023, followed by Unit 2 in 2024. Rosatom said the next scheduled refuelling of the second reactor is due in 2027.
The reactors differ from many conventional land-based nuclear plants in their refuelling cycle. Rather than routinely replacing part of the fuel every 12 to 18 months, the KLT-40S reactors are designed to operate for several years before a full core refuelling.
During a full refuelling, the reactor core is unloaded and replaced with fresh fuel.
The completion of the first refuelling cycle for both reactors marked a significant operational milestone for the Akademik Lomonosov, demonstrating the plant’s ability to complete its initial operating cycle as planned.
The floating plant is part of Rosatom’s push to develop small modular and transportable nuclear power systems for remote areas. Its deployment in Chukotka is intended to provide electricity and heat to the region, where harsh Arctic conditions make conventional power infrastructure particularly challenging.