Atomproject: AES-2006 is Russia’s major export design of nuclear technologies

The AES-2006 design which is used to build the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant (BelNPP) is the most popular design offered by the Russian state nuclear energy industry corporation Rosatom, Deputy Director General, Director of the WWER Technology Department of Atomproject Alexander Kazarin told an online conference hosted by BelTA on 20 December.

“The AES-2006 design is the major export design of Russian nuclear technologies,” he said. Apart from the BelNPP which main construction phase started in 2013, the Russian company signed the contract to design the Hanhikivi-1 Nuclear Power Plant in Finland at the end of last year and has already started providing the customer with the primary project documents. “At the start of December our design was purchased by Hungary to build the fifth and sixth power-generating units of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant. Thus, the BelNPP will have both elder and younger brothers in Russia and Europe,” Alexander Kazarin said.

He noted that in Russia alone the AES-2006 design is used to build two major power-generating units of the Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant (Leningrad-2 NPP). The design of another two units (the second construction phase of the Leningrad-2 NPP) is in progress. Two power-generating units of the Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant will also be equipped with the Water-Water Power Reactor.

The construction of the Baltic NPP is also based on the AES-2006 design. “The most advanced safety technologies are used there. The production of equipment continues; we are negotiating contracts with the future users of the electric power to be generated by the NPP,” he noted. According to Alexander Kazarin, Rosatom has decided that the Baltic NPP will focus on the export of electric power to the EU member states. “The implementation of the project has slowed down following the sanctions, but the work continues,” he added.

OAO Atomproject was set up as a result of the merger of OAO VNIPIET Chief Institute and St. Petersburg’s Atomenergoproject on 1 July 2014. Atomproject is the leading company of the Russian state nuclear energy industry corporation Rosatom. The company designs nuclear facilities, conducts research and develops new-generation nuclear power technologies.

The Belarusian nuclear power plant is being built 18km away from the town of Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The BelNPP 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. The first power-generating unit of the nuclear power plant is scheduled for launch in 2018, the second one in 2020.