Public hearings to license second unit of Belarusian nuclear power plant begin

MINSK, 8 September (BelTA) – Public hearings ahead of granting the license to operate the second unit of the Belarusian nuclear power plant have begun, BelTA has learned.

The public hearings are held in a hybrid format using videoconference technologies at three active sites (studios). The main studio is the multifunctional complex for social and cultural events and youth art located in Ostrovets. The other two studios are located at Gosatomnadzor premises in Minsk and in the Gomel Oblast branch of the Emergencies Ministry in Gomel.

During the public hearings the Nuclear and Radiation Safety Department of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry (Gosatomnadzor) will inform the general public about results of the safety expert evaluation and conformance evaluation of the nuclear power plant with requirements of the license in the course of preparing the Emergencies Ministry's decision on granting the license to operate the second unit. Participants of the hearings will be able to submit questions concerning the topic of the hearings.

In addition to technical and organizational matters that determine the safe operation of the Belarusian nuclear power plant as an integrated facility with two power-generating units over the course of 60 years, the public hearings will also touch upon infrastructural aspects of the long-term realization of the Belarusian nuclear energy program.