Khmelnitsky 1 prepared for licence extension

Ukraine's Energoatom plans to prepare a "safety justification" report for its application to extend the operating life of unit 1 of the Khmelnitsky nuclear power plant. The licence for the VVER-1000 unit, which started commercial operations in 1988, expires in 2018.

The report will address 14 factors in a safety analysis required by the country's regulator and outline a program of technical measures needed to continue the safe operation of the plant, Energoatom said today. The report is part of a program put into effect by the cabinet of ministers in December 2011 to improve the safety of the country's nuclear power plants, it said.

Last year, Energoatom carried out an inspection of unit 1 and extended the service life of 26,613 items of equipment and replaced 233. This year, it plans to do extend the service life of 10,000 items and replace about 120, Energoatom said.

Work to prepare the unit for its life extension will be completed before the end of 2017.

Ukraine generates almost half its electricity from 15 operating nuclear reactors, all Russian-designed pressurised water reactors. This includes two units at the Khmelnitsky nuclear power plant. Construction of unit 2 started in 1983 with plans to finish it in 1991. In 1990, however, construction was stopped as part of a moratorium on new plant construction. Construction was completed only in August 2004 after the moratorium was lifted. Work on the third and fourth Khmelnitsky units stopped in 1990 when they were respectively 75% and 28% complete.

Energoatom and Russia's Atomstroyexport signed a contract agreement in February 2011 for the completion of two reactors at the Khmelnitsky plant, which followed an intergovernmental agreement signed in June 2010. In October that year, Russia's Sberbank said it was willing to lend Energoatom $1 billion, with Ukraine meeting 15% of the cost of the project. Energoatom said in May 2011 it was not satisfied with the interest rate of the proposed loan and in August 2014 the state-run company’s president, Yury Nedashkovskiy, said Ukraine would not cooperate with Russia on construction of Khmelnitsky 3 and 4. Nedashkovskiy also said Energoatom would prepare a plan for the units, including a strategy to export the electricity they generate to Europe.

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News