OREANDA-NEWS. On January 30, 2007 US company Westinghouse has met with Ukrainian Cabinet of Ministers' support on the issue of nuclear fuel delivery to Ukraine, reported the Official website http://www.kmu.gov.ua.

The Government ordered the fuel and energy ministry and national nuclear energy generation company Energoatom to sign in April a contract on the supply of fuel assemblies, and to complete by the end of the year the audit of Westinghouse's assembly enterprise in Sweden.

By the year of 2015, Westinghouse may occupy 25% of the Ukrainian market, while the losses of the current monopoly supplier of fuel assemblies will run into USD 70 million - USD 75 million a year.

In 2005, Westinghouse, at the cost of the US government, supplied to the Yuzhnoukrainsk NPP six assemblies being used in a testing mode.

The company is planning to supply 42 assemblies more from 2009. In case the assemblies are acknowledged safe, Energoatom will start buying them at its own account.

Diversification of nuclear fuel deliveries to Ukraine is a priority of the Cabinet of Ministers' work, Energoatom reported.

Currently, the only supplier of fuel to Ukrainian NPPs is Russia's TVEL corporation.

The cost of fresh nuclear fuel provided to Ukrainian NPPs by TVEL grew by 20% in 2008.

Energoatom is running Ukraine's four nuclear power plants, accounting for nearly a half of Ukraine's electricity output.