ARMENIAN NUCLEAR POWER STATION WILL BE CLOSED ONLY AFTER THE CONSTRUCTION OF NEW NUCLEAR POWER BLOCK
ARKA
November 18, 2009
Yerevan
YEREVAN, November 18. /ARKA/. "Armenian Nuclear Power Station will be
closed only after the construction of new nuclear power block", said
Armen Movsisyan, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Armenia.
He said that two reactors will be functioning in Armenia for a certain
period of time. Maximum capacities of the functioning energy block
will be used. Recently Armen Movsisyan met with the management of
Ukrainian holding on production of turbines "Turboatom" in Yerevan.
"Viktor Subotin, General Director of "Turboatom announced about their
willingness of investing 200 million dollars for modernization of
Armenian Nuclear Power Station which will allow to prolong the dates
of exploitation of the functioning station.
Ukrainian party suggested us to discuss such an opportunity and see
whether it is advantageous for us. Currently we are discussing this
proposal. But prolongation of exploitation date of Armenian Nuclear
Power Station can only allow the Committee of International Experts",
said Movsisyan. In 2016 it is planned to perform global expertise of
the station and its technical state, after which decision will be made
whether to continue exploitation or not. "It is early to speak about
prolongation of exploitation dates of the station," said the Minister.
Armenian Nuclear Power Station is located near the city Metsamor
(about 30 km to the South from Yerevan).
It starts functioning in 1980 and terminated in March 1989 after the
earthquake in Spitak in December 1988 which took lives of 25 thousand
people. Second time it started functioning in November 1995 due to
strong energy crisis in the country. Two power blocks of the station
are equipped by Russian reactor ÷÷uò-440 of first generation. At
present functioning of the first block is terminated. The second
block with the capacity of 407.5 MVt produces in average from 40% to
50% energy in Armenia. According to the assessments of the experts,
the station can function till 2016.
Armenian Nuclear Power Station is under trust management of Open JSC
"INTER RAO ES" since September 2003 till 2013, the owner of which is
Russian state corporation "Rosatom". The date of license of Armenian
Nuclear Power Station for the production of energy was prolonged on
November 3, 2009 till June 10, 2014. Armenia plans to build new block
of Armenian Nuclear Power Station with the capacity of about 1000 MVt.
This project can cost about 5 billion dollars. With the aim of
involving foreign capital for the implementation of the project, in
2006 the Parliament of Armenia cancelled the monopoly of the right of
possessing new nuclear blocks. Construction works are planned to start
from 2011 and the new block will function till 2017. Till that time
the functioning energy block will be closed. Armenia and international
consortium Worley Parsons signed a contract on management of the
process of construction and montage of new energy block in the country
on May 28, 2009 which will cost of 459.7 million dollars. Worley
Parsons was recognized a winner of the relevant tender on May 12, 2009.