Amid ongoing delays in returning Koeberg Unit 2 to service, as well as delays to the steam generator replacement (SGR) programme across both Koeberg’s reactors, Eskom has announced the resignation of its chief nuclear officer, Riedewaan Barkadien.

COO Jan Oberholzer said on Monday that Barkadien, who has worked at Eskom for 27 years, would depart on July 31 to join a Canadian nuclear utility in an executive position.

Keith Featherstone would act in the role of chief nuclear officer, while a recruitment process was undertaken. Oberholzer reported that Featherstone had over 30 years of nuclear experience, including having previously been Koeberg power station manager.

It was also announced that Mahesh Valaitham would act as Koeberg power station GM, owing to the fact that the current acting GM, Nomawethu Mtwebana, had been selected to join the World Association of Nuclear Operators, which is based in the US, as a reverse loanee for the next year.

Mtwebana would depart for Atlanta once the current outage at Unit 2 had been completed towards the end of July. 

The Unit 2 outage, which has contributed a full additional stage of load-shedding during the most recent intensive bout of rotational power cuts, has been extended from an initial return to service deadline of mid-June. This, despite the fact that Eskom announced in March that the replacement of the unit’s three steam generators had been delayed until August 2023, owing to a lack of readiness.

The SGR programme has been described as key to Eskom securing a Long-Term Operations licence from the National Nuclear Regulator to extend the life of the plant by a further 20 years. The licence is currently due to expire in July 2024.

The replacement of the Unit 1 steam generators, meanwhile, is still planned to take place during the unit’s upcoming extended maintenance, scheduled for December.

Oberholzer said it was “not ideal” that the SGR programme had been pushed back by two years and that the Unit 2 replacements would take place so close to the expiry of the licence.

“[The delays have] unfortunately created a situation that we are cramping what needs to happen for the long-term operation of Koeberg right until the end, and that means that the risk obviously is increased.”

However, he stressed that the project team had been bolstered, while the capacity of the outage team had been beefed up with the recent appointment of an experienced ex-Koeberg executive.

“We are also employing some help from international companies that have done these steam generator replacements before [and] we will also be sending some of our colleagues to visit power stations where these replacements are taking place, or have taken place, to make sure that we put everything in place to have a successful steam generator replacement project.”

There are growing concerns, however, with Koeberg Alert Alliance’s Peter Becker - who was controversially removed from the NNR board by Mineral Resources and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe in February - having warned recently that the SGR delays would attract significant penalties from the main contractor, Framatome.

In a recent Cape Talk interview, Becker also questioned the decision by Eskom to proceed with its plan to extend Koeberg’s life, arguing that it would be better to focus on ensuring the safe operation of the reactors to the end of their licence period, so as to limit load-shedding and to create space for the building of replacement renewable generators.

The absence of the 920 MW Unit 2 for a protracted period, including during the high-demand winter months, had resulted in higher levels of load-shedding stages and the more frequent and extended use of the expensive diesel-fuelled open-cycle gas turbines.

Eskom has defended its decision to proceed with projects that would enable it to secure a licence to operate Koeberg for a further 20 years on the basis that the power station was a reliable provider of relatively low-cost electricity in a fleet dominated by unreliable, and increasingly more expensive, coal power stations.

It has also defended its safety record, with Oberholzer offering a fresh assurance on Monday that Eskom “has access to a sufficiently experienced and competent executive team to continue ensuring the safe and smooth operation of Africa’s only nuclear power station”.

“Eskom’s intent is to fill both the Koeberg power station general manager and the chief nuclear officer positions as soon as possible,” he added.