Rosatom: Public hearing was held in Ostrovets in advance of issuing a license for operation of Belarus NPP Unit 2

A public hearing was held in Ostrovets to decide on issuing the operation license for Unit 2 of Belarus NPP. The hearing was attended by representatives of the public, Belarus state authorities, organizations involved in the nuclear power program, scientific and educational community, local government, and the media. The purpose of the hearing was to inform about the progress and results of the safety review of Belarus NPP and its capacity to carry out the declared activities.

Key Highlights:

* Vitaly Polyanin, Vice President and Director of Belarus NPP Construction Project, is positive that Unit 2 will demonstrate excellent performance with safe operation, just like Unit 1.

* The Russian Gen III+ design was chosen for the nuclear power plant, which complies with international standards and the safety requirements of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

* Unit 2 of Belarus NPP was connected to the grid for the first time on May 13, 2023, under the staged program of power start-up.

Original Press Release:

Sept. 8 -- Rosatom issued the following news release:

Public hearing was held in Ostrovets in advance of making a decision to issue the operation license for Unit 2 of Belarus NPP. The event under the auspices of Belarus regulatory authority in the field of nuclear and radiation safety (Gosatomnadzor) was attended by representatives of the public, Belarus state authorities and organizations involved in implementation of the country’s nuclear power program, scientific and educational community, local government and the media.



The main purpose of public hearing was informing on preparation of an upcoming decision to issue the license, including on the progress and results of safety review of Belarus NPP state enterprise and assessment of its capacity to carry out the declared activities. Apart from technical and organizational aspects determining safe operation of the nuclear power plant, the hearing also brought up topics of long-term implementation of Belarus nuclear power program.



“Currently, Unit 2 is at the final stage of its trial operation. Since this May, reaching of design capacity has started at the facility. The Unit is passing all stages efficiently and smoothly. I am positive that Unit 2 will demonstrate excellent performance with safe operation, just as Unit 1”, noted Vitaly Polyanin, Vice President and Director of Belarus NPP Construction Project of Atomstroyexport JSC.



According to the results of a poll held in April-May 2023 by the Sociology Institute of the National Academy of Sciences, the majority of Belarusians support the NPP project construction project: 72.8% of all respondents expressed a positive attitude towards the nuclear power plant construction and 57.8% are sure of improvement of situation in the fuel and energy sector of the country. Russia is actively developing cooperation with friendly countries. The implementation of joint major energy projects is underway. Rosatom and its divisions are taking an active part in this work.



The Belarus NPP having two VVER-1200 reactors with the total capacity of 2,400 MW is located in Ostrovets (the Republic of Belarus). The Russian Gen III+ design was chosen for the first nuclear power plant in the country, which fully complies with the international standards and the safety requirements of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The General Contractor is Atomstroyexport company (a part of Rosatom Corporation).



In December 2021, nuclear fuel was loaded into Unit 2, which was the beginning of physical start-up. On May 13, 2023, Unit 2 was connected to the grid for the first time under the staged program of power start-up and the stage of Unit 2 trial operation commenced in the end of May.



For reference:

Rosatom State Corporation Engineering Division unites the leading companies of the nuclear industry, namely: Atomstroyexport JSC (Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, branch offices in Russia and abroad), Joint Design Institute – Atomenergoproekt JSC (Moscow, Nizhny Novgorod, and St. Petersburg branch offices and design institutes, branch offices in Russia and abroad, R&D branches) and subsidiary construction companies.



The Engineering Division ranks first in the world by the order portfolio and the number of NPPs constructed simultaneously across the world.



About 80% of the Division’s revenues originate from foreign projects.



The Engineering Division implements construction projects for high-power NPPs in Russia and across the world, renders a full range of EPC, EP, EPC(M) services including project management and design activities, and develops Multi-D technologies for the management of complex engineering facilities. The Division relies on the achievements of the Russian nuclear industry and innovative state-of-the-art technologies.



We construct reliable and safe NPPs equipped with generation III+ VVER reactors that are in line with all international requirements and recommendations.

Source: Rosatom

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