Westinghouse is Formally Qualified for the Completion of Temelin

PITTSBURGH, Feb. 23 /PRNewswire/ -- Westinghouse Electric Company LLC announced today that it has been notified by CEZ that it has successfully complied with the qualification requirements stipulated in the Qualification Documentation for the public contract “Completion of the Temelin Nuclear Power Plant.”

Westinghouse received the confirmation from CEZ on February 18, after submitting its response to the Qualification Document, issued by CEZ, in October 2009. In that submission, Westinghouse outlined its intent to participate in the tender process, its ability to successfully support the construction of new nuclear power plants, and the benefits that the AP1000™ nuclear power plant can provide in meeting the requirements of the Czech regulators and CEZ. Additionally, the AP1000 plant is well positioned towards providing a greater level of energy security for the people of Czech Republic.

Kerry Hanahan, Director of Project Development in the Czech Republic, says that Westinghouse welcomes the chance to build on its existing relationships in the Czech Republic.  “With a nearly 20-year history at Temelin, Westinghouse welcomes the opportunity to continue providing real solutions for the sustainability of the Czech nuclear program.  We believe that the AP1000 plant represents the natural basis of safe, secure, reliable, and economically beneficial energy production in the Czech Republic, now and into the future.”

The AP1000 design is certified by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the only Generation III+ reactor to receive such certification. The European Utility Requirements (EUR) organization certified that the AP1000 plant is compliant with European Utility Requirements, confirming that it can be successfully deployed in Europe.

The Westinghouse AP1000 plant offers additional benefits through its simplified modular construction methods and greater ability to involve Czech industry through localization of manufacturing and construction, known as the Buy Where We Build™ program.

In addition to four AP1000 plants that the Westinghouse/Shaw Consortium is providing in China, Westinghouse and its AP1000 plant have been identified as the supplier and technology of choice for no less than 14 plants that have been announced in the United States, including six for which engineering, procurement and construction contracts have been signed. Additionally, Westinghouse and China are currently in discussion on plans for additional AP1000 plants to be sited inland of China's coastal areas.

Westinghouse believes the AP1000 design is ideally suited for the worldwide nuclear power marketplace. The AP1000 nuclear power plant is:

• Based on standard Westinghouse pressurized water reactor (PWR) technology that has achieved more than 2,500 reactor years of highly successful operation
• An 1100MWe design that is ideal for providing baseload generating capacity and fits within the constraints of the Czech electrical grid
• Modular in design, promoting ready standardization and high construction quality
• Economical to construct and maintain (less concrete and steel and fewer components and systems mean there is less to install, inspect and maintain)
• Designed to promote ease of operation (features most advanced instrumentation and control systems ((I&C)) in the industry)

For more information about the Westinghouse AP1000 plant, visit its Web site at www.ap1000.westinghousenuclear.com.

Westinghouse Electric Company, a group company of Toshiba Corporation (TKY:6502), is the world's pioneering nuclear energy company and is a leading supplier of nuclear plant products and technologies to utilities throughout the world.  Westinghouse supplied the world’s first PWR in 1957 in Shippingport, Pa.  Today, Westinghouse technology is the basis for approximately one-half of the world's operating nuclear plants, including 60 percent of those in the United States.

SOURCE Westinghouse Electric Company LLC