Framatome’s first reload of GAIA fuel installed in a US reactor  

July 12, 2021 – The first reload of Framatome’s GAIA fuel has been installed in a U.S. pressurized water reactor (PWR). Manufactured at Framatome’s fuel fabrication facility in Richland, Washington, 64 fuel assemblies were loaded into the reactor as part of a standard spring refueling outage.
 
“This first reload of GAIA in the U.S. represents a significant milestone in Framatome’s innovations that provide increased flexibility and fuel efficiency for our customer’s operations,” said Lionel Gaiffe, senior executive vice president, Fuel Business Unit at Framatome. “GAIA is our most advanced pressurized water reactor fuel design. It is designed using our global expertise and shows our commitment to help our customers improve plant performance.”
 
GAIA builds upon the best features of Framatome’s fuel designs which have more than five decades of worldwide operating experience. The 17x17 design has several advanced features that provide added safety and economic benefits to nuclear plant operators.
 
Framatome initiated a mission to innovate in advanced fuel designs aiming at further improvements, which resulted in GAIA fuel for PWRs and ATRIUM 11 fuel for boiling water reactors. The first GAIA reload was delivered in Europe in 2019 after a decade of extensive operational and commercial testing.