Alstom to Retrofit Moisture Separator Reheaters at Nuclear Power Plant

Alstom has been awarded a contract worth close to €30 million (approx. CHF 37.5 million) by Kernkraftwerk Leibstadt AG (KKL) for the retrofit of the two horizontal moisture separator reheaters (MSR). In March 2014, Alstom had already been commissioned with the pre-engineering for the retrofit of the two components. Installation of the new moisture separator reheaters is planned for the plant’s main inspection phase of 2017 and final inspection for September 2017.  

The Leibstadt retrofit requires highly skilled technicians to operate around the plant’s boiling water reactor (BWR). Furthermore, these technicians are specially trained to adhere to the most stringent security standards. The two moisture separator reheaters are located between the high pressure and the low pressure steam turbines. Their task is to remove moisture from the steam exiting the high pressure turbine and to reheat the steam to an optimal temperature to improve efficiency in the downstream low pressure turbine. At the same time, moisture reduction and steam reheating reduce erosion, thus extending the longevity of the low pressure turbine.

«With Alstom, we can count on a reliable and long-standing partner for service and modernization projects on important key components of our power plant. KKL already benefitted in the past from the competence and the experience of the Alstom teams. It is very important for us, that the reliable and proven teams of KKL and Alstom will again closely collaborate for the retrofit of the moisture separator reheaters in order to guarantee high quality and on time delivery of this challenging project», says Dr Andreas Pfeiffer, Manager of the KKL power plant.

«We are delighted that Kernkraftwerk Leibstadt AG and project management renewed their trust in Alstom and our project teams. This reinforces the longstanding partnership, with retrofits successfully carried out together in the past, having led to a considerable increase of the power plant’s output», underlines Joseph Deiss, President Alstom Switzerland.