Belarusian nuclear
power plant

An acceptance inspection of a reactor vessel of the Belarusian nuclear power plant is scheduled to take place in late 2015. The information was released by Sergei Zaitsev, Head of the Office for Safety Assessment of Systems and Equipment of Nuclear Installations of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry, during a press conference held in BelTA’s press center on 17 June.

“Next week Gosatomnadzor representatives together with specialists of the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant will visit the Volgodonsk-based enterprise Atommash where a reactor vessel for the Belarusian nuclear power plant is being manufactured. An acceptance inspection of the reactor vessel is scheduled for late 2015,” said the official.

The reactor is a vertical cylinder with an elliptical bottom. The reactor core and the internal components will be located inside. The reactor is hermetically sealed by a lid that also bears the actuators and mechanisms meant to regulate the process and protect the reactor. The lid also contains pipe sleeves that will be used to feed cables from internal reactor control sensors.

The Volgodonsk-based enterprise Atommash is a branch of AEM Technologies, which is part of Atomenergomash, the mechanical engineering division of the Russian nuclear industry corporation Rosatom.

Requirements for storing the equipment of the Belarusian nuclear power plant are rigorously observed. The information was released by Sergei Zaitsev, Head of the Office for Safety Assessment of Systems and Equipment of Nuclear Installations of the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department (Gosatomnadzor) of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry, during a press conference held in BelTA’s press center on 17 June.

Equipment storage conditions were checked among other things during the complex inspection of the construction of the Belarusian nuclear power plant in May. “As far as storage is concerned, I would like to note that the hangars built for this purpose are indeed clean and dry. The equipment is kept in very good conditions. Requirements for storing equipment of the Belarusian nuclear power plant are observed. Access to the equipment is restricted. There were no complaints about the matter,” said the official.

According to the source, the production of equipment for the Belarusian nuclear power plant is permanently monitored. The quality is checked twice — at premises of the manufacturing enterprise and right before the equipment is put into storage. “All the documents are checked at premises of the manufacturing enterprise. As a rule, the work takes several days or weeks. Inspection certificates and equipment trial certificates are particularly closely examined,” explained Sergei Zaitsev. After that the equipment is delivered to the construction site of the Belarusian nuclear power plant to undergo yet another thorough examination. Thus, the equipment is examined even after transportation, explained the specialist. It prevents equipment deformation, loss of documents and so on. The conformance of equipment with design documents is also checked during installation and commissioning operations.

A complex inspection to verify safety measures during the construction of the first and second power-generating units of the Belarusian nuclear power plant took place on 12-29 May. The inspection involved representatives of the Emergencies Ministry, the State Standardization Committee, the Healthcare Ministry, the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Ministry, the Energy Ministry, the Interior Ministry, the Labor and Social Protection Ministry. Russian specialists — employees of the federal enterprise FSUE VO Safety — took part in the inspection as consultants.

As a result of the inspection Gosatomnadzor prepared and forwarded an inspection certificate to the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant as well as a letter of order, which fulfillment will be closely monitored. This year’s second complex inspection of the Belarusian nuclear power plant will take place in October.

The Volgodonsk-based branch of AEM Technologies (part of Atomenergomash, the mechanical engineering division of the Russian nuclear industry corporation Rosatom) has finished the key stage in welding the reactor vessel for the first power-generating unit of the Belarusian nuclear power plant, the Atomenergomash press service told BelTA.

According to the source, another important stage in manufacturing the reactor for the Belarusian nuclear power plant has been completed. All the tests indicate 100% quality of the welding seam. “It is now extremely important to keep up the pace, complete the remaining manufacturing operations on time, and ship the equipment to the customer,” the press service quoted Atomenergomash Director General Andrei Nikipelov as saying.

The assembly of the top and bottom parts of the reactor with the total weight of 320 tonnes had been completed before. After that an automatic welding operation took nine days to complete. The welding seam area was constantly heated.

The production of internal components of the reactor proceeded at the same time.

The reactor is a vertical cylinder with an elliptical bottom. The reactor core and the internal components will be located inside. The reactor is hermetically sealed by a lid that also bears the actuators and mechanisms meant to regulate the process and protect the reactor. The lid also contains pipe sleeves that will be used to feed cables from internal reactor control sensors.

The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build an AES-2006 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The reactor unit has been designed by OKB Gidropress, which is part of Atomenergomash and provides designer supervision and support services. The first power-generating unit of the Belarusian nuclear power plant is scheduled for commissioning in 2018, with the second one to go online in 2020.

AEM Technologies was established in 2007. It has an engineering division in Saint Petersburg and two manufacturing divisions in Petrozavodsk and Volgodonsk. Among other products AEM Technologies makes equipment for the nuclear energy industry, heat energy industry, gas, oil, and chemical industries.

So far 20% of the work required to build the Belarusian nuclear power plant has been done, BelTA learned from Yuri Pustovoi, director for building the Belarusian nuclear power plant, director of the representative office of the Russian company ASE-NIAEP-AEP in Belarus, during the international expo Atomexpo Belarus on 22 April.

“The main operations at the construction site of the Belarusian nuclear power plant began in November 2013. So far 20% of the total volume of the work has been done. This year we will have to do roughly 20% more,” said Yuri Pustovoi. The executive stressed that it is the amount of work, not the amount of money.

According to Yuri Pustovoi, as many as 26 construction companies are involved in building the Belarusian nuclear power plant, including three Russian ones. About 4,000 construction workers are busy building the power plant.

The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build an AES-2006 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The power plant will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). In line with the general contract for building the nuclear power plant the first power-generating unit is scheduled for commissioning in 2018, with the second one to go online in 2020.

The 7th international expo and conference Atomexpo Belarus 2015 opened in Minsk on 22 April. It will stay open through 24 April. Atomexpo Belarus 2015 is meant to demonstrate the latest technologies used to design, build, operate, and secure nuclear power plants. The forum will also highlight ways to ensure effective deliveries of equipment for building a nuclear power plant and non-energy uses of nuclear power.

The number of construction workers involved in building the Belarusian nuclear power plant will peak at 8,000. The information was released by Mikhail Filimonov, Director General of the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant, during the plenary session of the Industry, Fuel and Energy Complex, Transport and Communications Commission of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus on 8 April, BelTA has learned.

“At present we employ about 3,500 construction workers at the site. We plan to increase the figure up to 6,200 people by the end of the year. At the height of the construction operation in 2016-2017 the number will reach 8,000,” Mikhail Filimonov remarked.

The official stressed that the construction of the Belarusian nuclear power plant proceeds strictly on schedule. “The cooling tower is now 34m above the ground level. The building of the reactor of the first power-generating unit is at 22m. By the end of the year we plan to reach 44m and 22m with regard to the first and second units respectively,” he explained.

Speaking about spending, the Director General of the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant noted that in 2015 money will be needed to pay for construction and installation operations and for getting the equipment made. “We plan to spend $633 million in 2015, including $570 million borrowed from Russia. We have spent 14.5% of the planned figure since the beginning of the construction project,” he said.

The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build an AES-2006 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The power plant will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). The Russian merged company OAO NIAEP – ZAO ASE is the general designer and the general contractor of the project. In line with the general contract for building the nuclear power plant the first power-generating unit is scheduled for commissioning in 2018, with the second one to go online in 2020.