Status of the pebble bed modular reactor

Eskom is the South African state electricity utility, with an installed capacity of 38 397 MW at the end of 1996 (some 98% of all national generating assets). It is largely coal-based with a small proportion (5%) nuclear. As part of Eskomʹs long-term planning process, investigations have been made into new power generation options. On reconsidering the nuclear option, Eskom identified two key issues: cost and public acceptance. It was considered that both of these were driven by the safety issues related to potential accidents and the only way to obtain competitive costs with nuclear power was to remove the potential (however remote) for accidents with significant off-site consequences. The only reactor type that was seen to meet this safety standard was the pebble bed modular reactor (PBMR). This paper discusses the PBMR project history, plant performance and design, its benefits, safety features, and current status. It concludes that the PBMR will provide South Africa with a competitive option for coastal generation and, internationally, it will be highly competitive with virtually all other generation options.