Energoatom and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power have agreed to cooperate in the nuclear energy sector. A memorandum of understanding - signed today in Kiev by Energoatom President Yury Nedashkovsky and KHNP President and CEO Seok Cho - aims to promote the "sustainable social and economic development" of the two countries, the Ukrainian nuclear power plant operator said.

 Urenco is to supply uranium enrichment to Ukraine under a contract signed today by the Anglo-Dutch company and Ukrainian national nuclear company Energoatom.

The last damaged used fuel assembly from units 1-3 of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant was removed yesterday - from the cooling pool of unit 1 - and transferred to ISF1, a wet-type interim storage facility.

Westinghouse Electric Company has announced the expansion of its nuclear fuel factory in Västerås, Sweden. The US-based firm, which is majority-owned by Japan's Toshiba, said the expansion is a response to growing demand for nuclear fuel supply diversification for VVER-1000 reactors in Europe.

A crucial project at the site of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant can now proceed to its final stages thanks to additional pledges by the international donor community at a conference in Kiev yesterday. On the 30th anniversary of the Chernobyl accident, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and President of the European Council Donald Tusk held talks by telephone during which Tusk underlined the EU's "comprehensive support" to Ukraine in overcoming the consequences of the disaster.

The European Commission today pledged to the Nuclear Safety Account fund the largest part of the €45 million ($51 million) expected from the G7 and the Commission in addition to the existing support. This fund supports in particular the safe decommissioning of units 1 to 3 of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

Ukraine's Energoatom has said it would need at least two years and extra funds to introduce load-following at the 15 VVER units it operates. The Cabinet of Ministers requires the country's reactors to be adapted to load-following mode by the end of this year, according to its Action Plan for 2016.

Julie Bishop, the Australian foreign minister, yesterday signed an agreement with Ukrainian energy and coal industry minister Volodymyr Demchyshyn that clears the way for Australia to export uranium to Ukraine.

A consortium of four German companies has been awarded a contract to improve infrastructure for managing radioactive waste, the rehabilitation of contaminated areas and the decommissioning of nuclear power plants in Ukraine.

Westinghouse Electric has delivered the first batch of "upgraded" nuclear fuel assemblies to the Zaporozhe nuclear power plant in Ukraine, with fuel loading at unit 5 planned for May, pending regulatory approval.

Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers has approved a revised project to upgrade the South Ukraine nuclear power plant's water supply system, increasing its annual electricity output by up to 2.5 terawatt hours. Energoatom said yesterday that the project aims to "remove restrictions" on the plant caused by the insufficient cooling capacity of the Tashlykskaya reservoir.

French diplomats met with Ukrainian parliamentarians last week to discuss increased cooperation between the two countries in nuclear energy. Ukrainian nuclear power plant operator Energoatom announced on 29 January that a meeting with the parliamentary Committee on the Fuel and Energy Complex, Nuclear Policy and Nuclear Safety had been held the previous day on the initiative of the French embassy in Kiev.