Italy’s state-owned nuclear decommissioning company Sogin has completed the first phase of reactor pressure vessel (RPV) dismantling at the Garigliano nuclear power plant in southern Italy.
The company said it has removed contaminated metal components placed on the deflector in the upper part of the RPV.
Sogin said the operation is “the most complex activity from an engineering and operational point of view” during the decommissioning process at a nuclear power plant.
The process began at the end of 2023 and involved the flooding of the RPV and reactor channel, a step required to guarantee maximum safety as water acts as a shield against radiation, said Sogin.