Energy Minister: BelNPP already made it possible to replace 5.5bn cubic metres of natural gas
The construction project of the Belarusian nuclear power plant is at its final stage – as informed by Energy Minister Viktor Karankevich after his report to the President
The Energy Minister, in particular, recalled that the first power unit of the NPP was put into operation on June 10th, 2021, “It has already completed two routine cycles and, since October 6th, it has been put on the second scheduled preventive repair: forty-two heat-liberating spent nuclear fuel assemblies will be replaced. On October 14th, all routine technical measures for commissioning were completed at the second block, and the latter now operates at rated capacity. Since the inclusion of the first power unit into the grid, the station has generated more than 20.6bn kWh of electricity, which made it possible to replace 5.5bn cubic metres of natural gas and reduce greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere.”
According to Mr. Karankevich, the Government has created an acceptance commission headed by Deputy Prime Minister Piotr Parkhomchik. “By now, a license of the Emergencies Ministry has been received to operate the second power unit,” he added.
Work is underway to obtain the necessary conclusions of the supervisory authorities. In the near future, all necessary documents will be sent to the acceptance commission, and an appropriate decision will be made.
Mr. Karankevich also stressed that the NPP construction gave a powerful impetus to the development of related branches, including energy-intensive industries and electric transport. Two pilot projects are currently being implemented (in Zhodino and Shklov), within which all public transport will be replaced by electric buses.
