Russia's AtomEnergoProekt Completes Work on Foundation Plate for Leningrad Phase II Nuclear Power Plant

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--AtomEnergoProekt (SPbAEP) (St. Petersburg, Russia), which won the contract for constructing the first pair of nuclear reactors at the Leningrad Phase II nuclear power facility (Novovoronezh II), has completed work on the 7.5-meter-deep foundation plate for the first reactor.

The proposed structure will house the new AES-2006 model pressurized water reactor (PWR), which has a capacity of 1,170 MW. The advanced reactor model, with a 50-year design life, has been modeled to withstand direct aircraft hits and is also earthquake-resistant, being able to bear the impact of an earthquake of magnitude seven. The reactor is expected to have a thermal efficiency of 35% and maintain a lifetime capacity factor of 90%.

Power production at the Leningrad facility is expected to commence by 2013.The first unit of the Novovoronezh II nuclear power plant is slated for commissioning by October 2013, while the second reactor is scheduled to go on stream about a year later. The first pair of AES-2006 reactors is expected to be constructed at a cost of $3 billion-$3.7 billion. Eventually, four AES-2006 reactors are to be installed at the facility, replacing the four existing 1,000-MW high-power channel type (RBMK) reactors that will soon be out of operation.

SPbAEP had earlier signed a contract with the state for the design of two reactor units at Leningrad II, for which it was subsequently awarded orders worth $4.35 billion involving the construction of the first pair of reactors and pre-project tasks for the third and fourth units. The contract spans engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning activities of the venture. All four units of Leningrad Phase II are expected to be operational in 2018.

Subsequent to laying the foundation for the first reactor, SPbAEP is ready to commence work on the foundation of the second reactor. Meanwhile, Russian state authorities are conducting public hearings to convince the people of the minimal environmental impact of the nuclear plant and of the functionality of safety systems employed at the site. Allaying public concerns, officials revealed that a combination of four active systems, several passive systems and melted core traps have been planned to make the plant unprecedentedly safe.

Apart from generating power, each of the four nuclear reactors at Leningrad II will also serve as a source of heat for the district, capable of providing 9.17 petajoules per year, augmenting Russia's nuclear heating capacity to about 12 petajoules per year.

Further, Russia also has plans to set up 5,000 MW of generating power from small nuclear reactors for electricity and district heating purposes. The reactors are expected to come up in Arkhangelsk, Chukoyka, Severodvinsk and Voronezh by 2018.

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