ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Nuclear Regulatory Authority (PNRA) issued a construction license to the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) for Chashma Nuclear Power Plant Unit 5 (C-5) on Friday.
PAEC applied for the construction license in April this year along with the Preliminary Safety Assessment Report (PSAR) and other licensing submissions covering design and operational aspects of nuclear safety, radiation protection, emergency preparedness, waste management, and nuclear security.
After a thorough review and assessment of the licensing submissions and on satisfactory fulfillment of all regulatory requirements in compliance with the relevant national and international standards, PNRA issued the license.
According to the PNRA, C-5 is an advanced third-generation Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) of Chinese Hualong design (HPR1000) having active and passive safety features including a double-shell containment and reactor-filtered venting system, and has a 60 years design life.
In addition, a number of other technological innovations have been made in the design.
This is Pakistan’s 3rd nuclear power plant (NPP), and it has this design. Two NPPs (K-2 & K-3) of the same design are already successfully operating in Karachi and adding electricity to the national grid of Pakistan.
It is also pertinent to note that, C-5 will be the largest electricity-producing NPP in Pakistan with a capacity of 1200 MWe.