Rosatom’s TVEL Fuel Company has manufactured an experimental nuclear fuel assembly for the world's first land-based small modular reactor nuclear power plant (SMR NPP) based on a RITM-200N reactor.
The SMR plant with installed electrical capacity of 55 MW is scheduled to be launched in Yakutia in 2028. In 2025, Elemash (TVEL’s fabrication facility) will start fabrication of the first fuel assemblies with the whole initial loading batch expected to be manufactured in 2026. Before the start of production, the trial fuel assemblies and their dummies will undergo a range of necessary pre-irradiation tests.
Small nuclear power plants are considered an optimal solution for a sustainable and reliable power supply in remote areas away from central grids, where construction of large-scale power facilities is not rational. SMR NPPs can also replace old fossil-based power plants with high CO2 emissions. Overall, SMR NPPs have a number of particular advantages in addition to the traditional benefits of nuclear generation.