OREANDA-NEWS  On 13 November OMZ OJSC (Uralmash-Izhora Group) (RTS: OMZZ; LSE: OMZD; OTC: UHMVY) announced that SKODA JS a.s., a part of OMZ Group, signed a contract to supply two sets of a new generation of LKP-M/3-type control rod drive mechanism, including control electronics, to CEZ a.s., a Czech energy company.

The contract covers design, work associated with the replacement of outdated equipment, its disassembly and assembly, and necessary tests. The project is to be completed in 2012.

Over the last ten years, SKODA JS has manufactured 12 sets of drives, nine of them supplied to Ukrainian nuclear power plants. The company will be producing its thirteenth and fourteenth drive sets under the new contract.

The new equipment differs from previous versions mainly in connection with a significantly longer design lifetime, user convenience and a number of new functions contributing to safety enhancements for nuclear power plant operations. The parameters of the new equipment enable its use not only in existing power plants but also in new plants.