Westinghouse Electric Company and ITER signed a contract for $180 million for the assembly of the vacuum vessel for the fusion reactor. This is a key milestone in the construction of the ITER reactor, leading the way toward the use of fusion as a practical future source of reliable carbon-free energy.
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The ITER Tokamak pit with the two vacuum vessel sector modules installed. Westinghouse has participated in the fabrication of the sectors of the vacuum vessel, as part of the Fusion for Energy (F4E) Consortium with its partners Ansaldo Nucleare and Walter Tosto.
Westinghouse will be responsible for completing the vacuum vessel which is ITER’s most critical component: a hermetically sealed, double-walled steel container that will house the fusion plasma. When all the vacuum vessel sectors are in place, Westinghouse will start the most intensive stage of ITER assembly: simultaneously welding the nine sectors to form a single, circular ring-shaped chamber (also known as a torus).
“ITER is pleased to have Westinghouse Electric Company taking on this significant role in our first-of-a kind project,” said Pietro Barabaschi, ITER Director-General. “With decades of leadership in nuclear power plant design and construction, we are confident that Westinghouse will be able to apply its remarkable expertise to the assembly of the ITER Tokamak.”
“Westinghouse has always been at the forefront of energy innovation, and we are proud to work with ITER on this breakthrough initiative that could ensure energy security for generations to come,” said Dan Sumner, Westinghouse Interim CEO. “Our expert teams look forward to bringing our world-class capabilities and expertise to the completion of this important project.”
Westinghouse has collaborated with ITER for over a decade and has played a key role in the manufacturing of key parts for ITER vacuum vessel, including the manufacturing of five vacuum vessel sectors in cooperation with its partners Ansaldo Nucleare and Walter Tosto. Westinghouse participation involved developing advanced fabrication techniques and collaborating with global partners to meet ITER's high-quality requirements.
Westinghouse Electric Company is shaping the future of carbon-free energy by providing safe, innovative nuclear technologies to utilities globally. Westinghouse supplied the world’s first commercial pressurized water reactor in 1957 and the company’s technology is the basis for nearly one-half of the world's operating nuclear plants. Over 135 years of innovation make Westinghouse the preferred partner for advanced technologies covering the complete nuclear energy life cycle. For more information, visit www.westinghousenuclear.com and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn and X.
ITER—designed to demonstrate the scientific and technological feasibility of fusion power—will be the world's largest experimental fusion facility. Fusion is the process that powers the Sun and the stars: when light atomic nuclei fuse together to form heavier ones, a large amount of energy is released. Fusion research is aimed at developing a safe, abundant and environmentally responsible energy source.
ITER is also a first-of-a-kind global collaboration that serves as the scientific backbone behind the growth of a fusion industry. As the host, Europe contributes almost half of the costs of its construction, while the other six Members to this joint international venture (China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation and the United States), contribute equally for the remaining expenses. The ITER Project is under construction in Saint-Paul-lez-Durance, in the south of France.
For more information on the ITER Project, visit: http://www.iter.org/
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