This year, Energoatom plans to continue the practice of reducing the timeframe for the repair campaign at Ukrainian NPPs, which was achieved in 2023-24, the company’s CEO Petro Kotin said.
“We manage to do this at an accelerated pace and, which is very good, without reducing the quality of repairs (…) We reduced the repair time last year. This year, we also plan to reduce the timeframe wherever possible,” he said on the Energo LIVE program.
As explained by the CEO, the main measure during scheduled outages at nuclear power units is nuclear fuel reloading.
“Nuclear fuel reloading is what a nuclear power unit needs to ensure that it operates continuously for one year afterwards,” he said.
Along with the transshipment, the company is carrying out repair work to restore the equipment and bring it to the highest standards.
As reported, in 2024, Energoatom continued the practice of reducing the total duration of scheduled repairs of power units, reducing them by another 59 days. The repair campaign was planned so that all nine power units located in the territory controlled by Ukraine could operate during the cold season.
Currently, Energoatom operates nine power units at South Ukrainian, Rivne and Khmelnytsky NPPs with a total capacity of 7880 MW. All of them are located in the territory controlled by Ukraine.
Zaporizhzhia NPP with six VVER-1000 power units with a total capacity of 6,000 MW has not been generating electricity since September 11 of the same year after its occupation on March 3-4, 2022.
Ukraine has introduced additional security measures at nuclear power plants (NPP) in order to avoid interference in their work with the aim of destabilizing, head of state Volodymyr Zelensky has said.”To date, Energoatom is operating as it never did. Some 13 blocks out of 15 are working. God grant that everything is good. We are additionally protecting them. Frankly speaking, we know that today everyone wants to do so that there is energy destabilization in Ukraine,” Zelenskiy said during a press conference in Kyiv on Friday.”The main thing for us is that there are no blackouts,” the head of state said.
Head of National Nuclear Generating Company Energoatom Petro Kotin and Senior Vice President for Commercial Operations at Westinghouse Electric Company Elias Gedeon have discussed cooperation in the construction of new NPP units in Ukraine using AP1000 reactors.
According to the press service of Energoatom, in particular, during the negotiations held in Kyiv on June 29, the parties agreed to create a joint working group.
Energoatom said that the use of the American AP1000 technology – a next Generation III+ double loop reactor with a capacity of about 1100 MW, the design of which has fewer components, and standardization and licensing of which help to reduce the construction time and cost – in the long term will enable the company to provide a high level of safety and reliable operation of nuclear generation and respect for the environment.
As reported, Energoatom and Westinghouse have been cooperating since 2000 in the supply of nuclear fuel.
JSC Turboatom (Kharkiv) in April plans to deliver a first modernized rotor under a contract to modernize high- and medium-press cylinders of reactor two of Yuzhnoukrainsk nuclear power plant for the total amount of UAH 300 million.
According to a report on Turboatom’s website, the contract was signed on February 25 by Turboatom Director General Viktor Subotin and Director of the Atomkomplekt division of National Nuclear Generating Company Energoatom Ruslan Zhmudsky.
According to Subotin, the signed agreement is the first contract to modernize the flow section of this type of turbine in Ukraine. The company has already performed similar work for customers outside the country, including at reactor five of Kozloduy NPP (Bulgaria).
“An entire program to modernize the flow sections of the reactors of Ukraine, both of our turbines and of Russian ones, is ahead,” the press service said, citing Subotin.
In turn, Zhmudsky said that the signed contract is part of the approved five-year modernization program.
“The program is designed until 2024, and in the situation that has developed now (namely, lack of funding for the construction of new reactors), the modernization of existing equipment will give us up to 10% of additional capacity,” he said.
According to Deputy Director General of Yuzhnoukrainsk NPP Andriy Petruk, the plant has been using Turboatom’s equipment for many years.
“The most important thing for us is the import substitution program, with which Turboatom helps us. The modernization, the contract for which has been signed, will increase the electric power by approximately 100 MW,” he said.
According to Turboatom General Designer Yevhen Levchenko, the five-year program provides for the modernization of seven more of the same reactors: one at Yuzhnoukrainsk NPP and six at Zaporizhia NPP.
“The next step is the modernization not of our turbines, but of the turbines manufactured by Russia’s Power Machines,” he added.
