Barkun: BelNPP construction unaffected by Russian ruble devaluation

The devaluation of the Russian ruble will not affect the construction schedule of the Belarusian nuclear power plant (BelNPP),said Andrei Barkun, Deputy Director General, Head of the Capital Construction Office of the enterprise Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant, during the press conference arranged by BelTA on 11 March.

"Today the work is on. It did not stop, and we are on schedule," said Andrei Barkun.

The financing of the construction of the nuclear power plant is rhythmic. When asked whether the construction costs may turn out higher, he replied: "Prices in the contract are fixed in U.S. dollars. The Russian loan is denominated in U.S. dollars too. According to the contract, the cost of works and equipment is defined in the Russian rubles and then transferred into U.S. dollars every month according to the exchange rate at the end of a month".

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.