NNEGC Energoatom and the American company Westinghouse have launched a project to build KhNPP-5 and KhNPP-6 using AR1000 technology.
The project launch ceremony took place on April 11 at the Khmelnytsky NPP site with the participation of US Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink and Minister of Energy of Ukraine Herman Halushchenko (information is being delayed for security reasons).
According to Energoatom’s acting Chairman of the Board Petro Kotin, the AR1000 is a proven III+ reactor with unique fully passive safety systems, modular standard design, industry-leading performance and the ability to operate in maneuvering mode.
“This is a more modern and safer technology than the ones we are currently operating. This is a new step towards more modern, reliable and safe energy. And it is in Ukraine that the first power unit in Europe based on AR1000 technology will be built. This will be KhNPP-5,” said Kotin.
“We are proud to be involved in the history that Ukraine is making in the energy sector. We can already say that our cooperation is the wedding of the year,” said Patrick Fragman, President and CEO of Westinghouse Electric Company.
He emphasized that this is an improved technology with increased efficiency, and the power unit itself is compact and has a lower cost compared to others.
“Here, at the KhNPP site, we note that the heavy equipment, which takes the longest time to produce, is already ready, and this will significantly accelerate the construction time. Thanks to the assistance of the U.S. government and the fact that the main agreements have been signed, it will be even faster,” he emphasized.
Fragman added that the AR1000 reactor is designed to operate for 60 years, but, according to him, it is likely to be longer.
“These units allow for balancing. This is a special feature of the American AR1000 technology. Now Russian aggressors are destroying Ukraine’s balancing capacities, and if we already had such a nuclear power unit, we could maneuver it and, accordingly, perform important functions for the power system,” Galushchenko emphasized.
“This is a project for the next many years. The United States is committed to fruitful cooperation with Ukraine… Together with the U.S. Congress, we are trying to support you not only in the context of armed aggression, but also economically,” Brink emphasized.
Regarding the sources of funding for the project, Kotin said the company could finance it on its own, as it has large profits, but the lion’s share of them goes to cover the electricity tariff for households (PSO).
“Last year, Energoatom spent UAH 128 billion of its net profit on PSO. If the company is exempted from PSO, we will have $3 billion of profit for which we can build a unit. If not, we will need to take out loans,” Kotin told reporters after the ceremony.
He added that the construction period for one unit is approximately 4-5 years, and its cost is about $5 billion.
As reported, on December 17, 2023, in Kyiv, Energoatom CEO Petro Kotin and Westinghouse CEO Patrick Fragman signed a contract for the purchase of a reactor unit for Ukraine’s first nuclear power unit using AP1000 technology.
Prior to this, in July 2022, the companies signed a contract to develop an updated feasibility study for the construction of two AP1000 units at the Khmelnytsky NPP site.
In September 2021, Energoatom and Westinghouse signed a memorandum on the construction of five nuclear power units in Ukraine. In June 2022, the companies signed agreements to increase the number of nuclear power units under construction using AP1000 technology in Ukraine from five to nine units and to establish a Westinghouse engineering and technical center in the country.
