ULBA-FA LLP

What ULBA-FA LLP does

ULBA-FA LLP (Товарищество с ограниченной ответственностью «Ульба-ТВС») is a Kazakh-Chinese joint venture established in December 2015 to manufacture nuclear fuel assemblies for pressurized water reactors (PWRs). It is owned 51% by Ulba Metallurgical Plant JSC (a Kazatomprom subsidiary) and 49% by CGNPC Uranium Resources Company, and operates the only nuclear fuel assembly production facility in Central Asia, located on the Ulba Metallurgical Plant industrial site in Ust-Kamenogorsk, East Kazakhstan Region. The company produces AFA 3G™ fuel assemblies under a technology license from Framatome (formerly AREVA), using ultrasonic welding for fuel rod fabrication, robotic skeleton assembly, and a fully automated production line equipped with high-technology machinery from France, Germany, the USA, and China. Design capacity is 200 tonnes of fuel assemblies per year (approximately 440 TVS assemblies), all of which are produced under a 20-year off-take contract with CGNPC-URC for use in Chinese nuclear power plants operating Western-design PWR reactors.

The company has no domestic market — Kazakhstan currently has no operating nuclear power plants — so its entire revenue base is exported to China under the bilateral government-backed supply arrangement. Revenue mechanics are transaction-based on assembly deliveries at undisclosed market-linked pricing, with cost inputs supplied upstream by UMZ (uranium dioxide fuel pellets) and equipment/know-how supplied by Framatome. Ulba-FA achieved Framatome process certification in September 2021 and CGNPC-URC product certification in October 2021, produced its first commercial uranium-bearing assembly on August 12, 2021, and formally opened the factory on November 10, 2021. The project represents approximately 49 billion KZT (~$150M USD) of capital deployed and was launched under Kazakhstan's Atomic Industry Development Program to position the country as a nuclear fuel supplier beyond raw uranium exports.

Name

ULBA-FA LLP

Legal name

Товарищество с ограниченной ответственностью «Ульба-ТВС»

Website

https://ulba-fa.kz

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Short description

ULBA-FA LLP is a Kazakh-Chinese joint venture operating Central Asia's only nuclear fuel assembly plant in Ust-Kamenogorsk, manufacturing AFA 3G™ fuel assemblies for Chinese PWR reactors under a 20-year CGNPC off-take contract.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nuclear Fuel Manufacturing

akta.pro primary industry

Fuel Fabrication (UO2 Fuel Pellets, Rods & Assemblies) (EUAKACAF)

Keywords

• Nuclear fuel assemblies
• Fuel rod manufacturing
• Pressurized water reactor fuel
• Uranium dioxide pellets
• Nuclear component fabrication

Headquarters

HQ city

Ust-Kamenogorsk (Усть-Каменогорск)

HQ country

Kazakhstan

HQ region

Asia

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations

Revenue model

1. TVS (Nuclear Fuel Assembly) Sales to CGNPC/China: 100% of production is committed under a 20-year off-take contract with CGNPC Uranium Resources Company (China). The factory produces approximately 440 TVS assemblies per year (200 tonnes of assemblies in uranium equivalent) for Chinese nuclear power plants. All production is exported to China — there is no domestic market as Kazakhstan currently has no operating nuclear power plants.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

ULBA-FA LLP manufactures nuclear fuel assemblies (TVS) of AFA 3G™ design under license from Framatome (formerly AREVA) for use in pressurized water reactors (PWR) at nuclear power plants. The production process encompasses fuel rod (TVEL) manufacturing, skeleton fabrication, and final TVS assembly at a fully automated facility in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan, with a design capacity of 200 tonnes of fuel assemblies per year (approximately 440 assemblies). All production is committed under a 20-year off-take contract to China General Nuclear Power Corporation (CGNPC) for Chinese nuclear power plants.

Product overview

ULBA-FA LLP is a manufacturing enterprise producing nuclear fuel assemblies and components for nuclear power plants. The company's primary product is the AFA 3G™ fuel assembly design licensed from Framatome (formerly AREVA), a world leader in nuclear fuel manufacturing. The production process encompasses three main product lines: fuel assemblies (ТВС), fuel rods (твэлы), and skeleton structures. With a production capacity of 200 tons per year, the facility represents the only nuclear fuel manufacturing capability in Central Asia. All production is export-oriented, with guaranteed off-take contracts supplying fuel to nuclear power plants in the People's Republic of China. The manufacturing process is highly automated, utilizing French, German, American, and Chinese equipment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• AFA 3G™ Fuel Assemblies (TVS / Тепловыделяющие сборки) Nuclear fuel assemblies of AFA 3G™ design licensed from Framatome, manufactured for use as fuel in pressurized water reactors (PWR) at nuclear power plants. Each assembly contains 150-350 fuel rods, is 2.5-3.5 meters long, and 30-40 cm in diameter, made from zirconium alloy to minimize neutron absorption. Produced at 200 tonnes/year capacity (~440 assemblies per year) for export to Chinese nuclear power plants.
• Fuel Rods (TVELs / Твэлы) Fuel rods containing enriched uranium dioxide pellets, sealed in hermetic zirconium tubes. These form the fundamental fuel elements that are assembled into nuclear fuel assemblies (TVS). Produced as part of the AFA 3G™ manufacturing process.
• Skeleton Structures (Скелетоны) Structural skeleton components of fuel assemblies, manufactured using advanced ultrasonic welding (USW) and dual-sided spot welding robotics. Produced as part of the AFA 3G™ fuel assembly manufacturing process.

Quantifiable outcome

• 200 tonnes/year production capacity of nuclear fuel assemblies (≈440 assemblies per year)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• AO «УМЗ» / Ulba Metallurgical Plant (Kazakhstan)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2015AO «Ульбинский металлургический завод» (Ulba Metallurgical Plant, UMZ) — a subsidiary of Kazatomprom — is the Kazakh co-founder (51% stake) and provides the industrial site for the TVS factory. UMZ also supplies fuel pellets (uranium dioxide pellets) produced at its uranium production facilities, loading the capacity of its uranium production division. UMZ provides the upstream fuel material for TVS manufacturing.
• Framatome (France, formerly AREVA)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2015Framatome (formerly AREVA NP) is the technology licensor and equipment supplier. The company granted a license for AFA 3G™ fuel assembly technology, provided engineering documentation, supplied core production equipment (from France, Germany, USA), and conducted personnel training at its facilities in Lingen, Germany and Roman, France. Framatome certified the production process in September 2021.
• Government of the Republic of KazakhstancoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2014The Government of Kazakhstan initiated and mandated the project through the Program for the Development of the Atomic Industry 2011-2014 with prospects to 2020 (Government Decree No. 728 of 29 June 2011). Issued necessary licenses and permits for nuclear facility construction, approved strategic object designation, and provided regulatory framework. On 9 June 2017 (Decree No. 358), the government approved construction of the nuclear installation. The President of Kazakhstan (Nursultan Nazarbayev, then Kassym-Jomart Tokayev) presided over key milestones via telebridge.
• Kazatomprom / АО «НАК «Казатомпром» (National Atomic Company of Kazakhstan)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2010Kazatomprom is the ultimate parent company through its 51% stake in UMZ. The TVS factory project was mandated under Kazakhstan's Atomic Industry Development Program 2011-2020 (Government Decree No. 728 of 29 June 2011). Kazatomprom implemented the project jointly with CGNPC. The project enables Kazatomprom to diversify from uranium mining into nuclear fuel manufacturing, entering the nuclear fuel cycle value chain.
• Government of the People's Republic of ChinacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2010The Government of China supported the joint venture through CGNPC. The bilateral cooperation was formalized through an Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Government of the People's Republic of China on Cooperation in the Field of Peaceful Use of Atomic Energy, signed in Astana on 12 June 2010. An expansion agreement was signed between Kazatomprom and CGNPC on 14 December 2014 in Astana.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Framatome: Framatome (formerly AREVA) is both the technology licensor for Ulba-FA's AFA 3G™ fuel design and one of the world's largest nuclear fuel assembly fabricators operating in France, Germany and the USA. It is the most direct comparable because Ulba-FA's entire product line is built around Framatome's licensed design and certified processes.
• Westinghouse Electric Company: Westinghouse designs and manufactures competing PWR fuel assemblies (e.g., ROADRUNNER, AFA-derived and AP1000 fuel) from facilities in the US, UK (Springfields), and Sweden (Västerås). It serves the same PWR customer base as Ulba-FA's AFA 3G™ line and is a direct competitor for Western-design nuclear fuel supply contracts.
• TVEL (Rosatom fuel division): TVEL, the fuel arm of Russia's Rosatom, is the world's largest supplier of nuclear fuel and the incumbent supplier to most Russian-design VVER reactors and several Western PWR operators. It directly competes with Ulba-FA for incremental fuel demand at CGNPC- and CGN-affiliated Chinese reactors.
• Global Nuclear Fuel (GNF): Global Nuclear Fuel is a GE Hitachi-led joint venture that designs and manufactures PWR and BWR fuel assemblies in the US and Japan. It competes with AFA 3G™ and other PWR fuel designs in international tenders and shares Ulba-FA's BWR/PWR fuel fabrication business model.
• KEPCO Nuclear Fuel (KNF): KNF manufactures PWR fuel assemblies in South Korea for domestic KHNP reactors and export customers in the Middle East and Europe. It is a like-for-like competitor in AFA-style PWR fuel fabrication and one of the few Asian peers at Ulba-FA's scale.
• ENUSA Industrias Avanzadas: ENUSA is the Spanish state-owned nuclear fuel fabricator, producing PWR and BWR fuel assemblies at its Juzbado facility for European utilities. It is one of the small group of Western PWR fuel fabricators and a direct peer in business model and product family.
• Springfields Fuels (Westinghouse UK): Springfields is the UK's principal nuclear fuel fabrication site, producing AGR and PWR fuel and historically supplying a broad range of Western utilities. It is a like-for-like PWR fuel manufacturer comparable in scope, regulatory complexity, and customer mix.

Broad incumbents

• China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC): CNNC is China's state-owned nuclear champion and parent of much of the country's domestic fuel fabrication capability (e.g., Jianzhong Nuclear Fuel). It is a broad incumbent competitor and the natural alternative supplier to CGNPC reactors if the Ulba-FA off-take were ever redirected.
• BWX Technologies (BWXT): BWXT is a US-based nuclear component and fuel manufacturer serving naval, commercial, and government nuclear markets, including uranium fuel fabrication and downblending. It overlaps with Ulba-FA's nuclear fuel manufacturing activity but operates across a broader portfolio.

Others

• Cameco Corporation: Cameco is the world's largest publicly traded uranium producer and, through Westinghouse (in which it holds a stake), a participant in nuclear fuel fabrication. It is adjacent rather than directly comparable — a uranium/fuel-cycle peer rather than a PWR fuel-assembly fabricator — but represents the same Kazakh-adjacent nuclear fuel value chain.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCYZde6bK77Ao

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about ULBA-FA LLP