Ukraine approves investment in South Ukraine plant
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.
Energoatom, the state-run operator of all 15 of Ukraine's nuclear power reactors, said the approval was given via a government decree dated 13 January.
After completion of the project, the additional annual electricity output of the plant will be between 0.5 TWh and 2.5 TWh, Energoatom said.
According to the Cabinet decree, the estimated cost of construction and equipment provided for the project is about Hryvnia 986 million ($38 million). Energoatom said this figure is up from the estimate contained in the draft project plan the cabinet approved in December of Hryvnia 205 million ($8 million). This original estimate is "insufficient to perform the necessary work and purchase the required equipment," Energoatom said. The cost of the work is expected to be covered by an increase in electricity tariffs, it added.
A tender is to be held this year for the supply of equipment for the project, which is to be completed within 36 months.
The South Ukraine plant is located on the banks of Pivdennyi Buh river in the town of Yuzhnoukrayinsk, in the Mykolayiv region. It consists of three VVER-1000 reactors with a total installed capacity of 3000 MWe. Also near the river are two twin-unit hydro power plants.
In 2014, the plant generated 18.6 TWh of electricity, which was 5.8 TWh (31%) more than in 2013.
In December, the board of the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine approved the continued operation of unit 2 of the South Ukraine plant until the end of 2025. The unit was shut down on 10 May, two days before the expiry of its design lifetime, for major upgrading over 300 days costing $114 million to enable a 10-year life extension.
Researched and written
by World Nuclear News
