Second Novovoronezh II unit enters commercial operation
01 November 2019
Unit 2 of the Novovoronezh II nuclear power plant in southwest Russia has entered commercial operation, 30 days ahead of schedule, state nuclear corporation Rosatom announced today. Commissioning of the VVER-1200 brings the number of power reactors in commercial operation in Russia to 36.
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Leningrad II plant begins providing district heating
02 December 2019
Unit 1 of Russia's Leningrad II nuclear power plant has been integrated into the heat supply system of the city of Sosnovy Bor, operator Rosenergoatom has announced. The VVER-1200 reactor will replace electricity and heating capacity lost with the closure last December of the first of four RBMK-1000 units at the nearby Leningrad plant.
All major manufacturing and production companies located on the industrial park in Sosnovy Bor were the first to receive the heat produced by Leningrad II-1, Rosenergoatom said. The next stage will be to integrate the reactor's heat supply into the city's residential heating system.
The net cost of heat generated at the Leningrad nuclear plant is far lower than that produced by boiler rooms run on organic fuel, the company said. In addition, the use of nuclear-generated heat avoids the emission of carbon dioxide and has a lesser impact on the environment.
"The VVER-1200 power block is a replacement for both electricity and heat capacities, and it will start delivering those as a replacement for the shutdown RBMK-1000 power block," said Dmitry Tsygankov, head of the turbine hall of Leningrad II unit 1 . "The Leningrad NPP turbine hall and district heat supply boiler room teams have fully ensured reliable and trouble-free heat supply to the city and the industrial park using a high-capacity power block that can output twice as much as an RBMK block."
Andrey Graf, deputy head of Leningrad II-1's turbine hall, added: "The thermal output of the new power block is 3200 MW or 250 Gcal / h, which is pretty much enough to supply heat to the industrial park and all Sosnovy Bor. As of now, we are only using one-third of the equipment's capacity, and it caters for 60% of the boiler room's heat demand. In the future, we are ready to fully load our cogeneration plant and start selling heat power for central heating and hot water supply in the nuclear power city and satisfy any demand. "
The existing Leningrad plant site inclus four RBMK-1000 units, while Leningrad II will have four VVER-1200 units. Leningrad unit 1 was shut down for decommissioning on 21 December last year, with the other three units scheduled to shut by 2025. Leningrad II unit 1 was connected to the grid on 9 March 2018, becoming the second VVER-1200 reactor to start up, following the launch in 2016 of Novovoronezh unit 6. The loading of fuel into the Leningrad II-2 VVER-1200 is scheduled to begin in March next year.
At 50, Beznau, the oldest nuclear power plant in Europe, denies being obsolete
AFP • 05 / 12 / 2019
Reactor 1 at the Swiss nuclear power plant at Beznau, the oldest in service in Europe, celebrates its 50th birthday at the beginning of December, far too long for the ecological parties and associations which consider it dangerous and call for its immediate shutdown.
December 9, 1969: The Beatles are not yet separated, a man has just walked on the Moon and Switzerland launches, in the north of its territory, on an islet of the Aar river, the exploitation of its first nuclear power plant.
50 years later, on the bright blue wall of the reactor building 1 visible from the turbine room, we can read in German: "Anniversary 1969-2019. 355.000 hours of service".
And Beznau 1 is not far from being the nuclear dean of the world: according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), only reactors 1 and 2 at Tarapur (west India) are ahead of it, after put into service in October 1969.
"It's a privilege to be able to work here," said Michael Dost, director of the plant managed by the Swiss electricity distributor Axpo, showing his pride in working in a monument of industrial history which, with its two reactors (the number 2 was commissioned in 1971) produces some 6.000 gigawatt / h, approximately twice the electricity consumption of Switzerland's largest city, Zurich (400.000 inhabitants).
While leading the visit for journalists on the site, especially in the heart of a control room with very "sixties" buttons and control panels, the boss of Beznau believes that the age of the plant is not a problem .
- 2CV and Tesla -
On the wall of the reactor building 1 of the Beznau power plant, we can read in German: "Anniversary 1969-2019. 355.000 hours of service", July 9, 2019 in Dottingen, Switzerland (AFP / Fabrice COFFRINI)
On the wall of the reactor building 1 of the Beznau power plant, we can read in German: "Anniversary 1969-2019. 355.000 hours of service", July 9, 2019 in Dottingen, Switzerland (AFP / Fabrice COFFRINI)
"A lot has been done on this installation", he explains to AFP, adding: "additions have been made (...), components have been modified, new equipment built and we are therefore in the process of high technical requirements that can be expected from a nuclear power plant ".
Asked by AFP, the Federal Inspectorate for Nuclear Safety (IFSN), the authority which oversees the safety of Swiss power plants, believes that "Beznau 1 has been able to prove that it fulfills the regulatory requirements thanks to major refitting ".
But for opponents of nuclear power, the work carried out does not compensate for the aging of the equipment.
"Large sums have been invested in this plant", admits for AFP Florian Kasser, nuclear referent at Greenpeace-Switzerland, "but you do not transform a 2CV into a Tesla, simply by investing in security measures".
The activist points, for example, to the latest three-year shutdown of the reactor - between 2015 and 2017 - linked in particular to analyzes on the pressurized water tank of the reactor, the steel of which had defects. Experts concluded that they were not caused by the operation of the reactor and did not present a danger, which the IFSN validated.
- Retirement at 61? -
But Greenpeace believes that the tests did not take into account the effects of radioactivity on the wear and tear of this tank. According to Mr. Kasser, Beznau therefore represents "a major risk in terms of nuclear safety".
A position also defended by the Greens who recorded a record progression in the last federal elections, at the end of October and demand the immediate closure of the plant.
The Beznau stop is not yet on the agenda, however.
Admittedly, the Swiss approved by referendum on May 21, 2017 a gradual exit from nuclear power - which represents about a third of the national electricity supply - by voting against the construction of new power plants.
But a few months earlier, on November 27, 2016, they had voted against an initiative to ban Swiss power plants from operating beyond 45 years of age.
Currently, Switzerland has four power stations: Gösgen, Leibstadt, Beznau and Mühleberg but the latter will definitively close on December 20.
"The lifespan of power plants is not defined," said the Energy Office.
"The effective operating period is therefore decided by safety, monitored by the IFSN and / or the operator (...) if it decides that the investment in additional safety measures is no longer economically viable ", he says.
Asked about this, the site owner said: "we plan to be able to operate the installation until 2030". It will then be time for Beznau 1 to retire. At 61 years old.
Reactor vessel installed at third Korean APR-1400
28 November 2019
A ceremony was held today to mark the installation of the reactor pressure vessel of the APR-1400 under construction as unit 5 of South Korea's Shin Kori nuclear power plant. The 1340 MWe pressurized water reactor is scheduled to begin commercial operation in March 2023
"Reactor installation is the most important milestone of the entire construction period, completing the construction of major structures at about 50% of the entire building process, and embarking on electromechanical works," Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) said. The reactor vessel was manufactured by Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction.
Construction of Shin Kori units 5 and 6 began in April 2017 and September 2018, respectively. As of the end of October, construction of the two units was 51% complete. Unit 6 is scheduled to be commissioned in June 2024.
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izentrop wrote:FPL nuclear power plant at Turkey Point, first US nuclear power plant to be licensed at 80 https://www.utilitydive.com/news/fpls-t ... rs/568593/
except that a wind turbine that breaks, it does less damage than an atomic power plant.It would have been a great investment, then. While a wind turbine would have a theoretical lifespan of 20 years and in practice it seems less.
and above all it costs less in manufacturing, maintenance, recycling and no atomic waste. and EDF seems to believe it more and more by building more and more wind farms.Janic wrote:except that a wind turbine that breaks, it does less damage than an atomic power plant.It would have been a great investment, then. While a wind turbine would have a theoretical lifespan of 20 years and in practice it seems less.
https://lenergeek.com/2018/07/25/transi ... -eolienne/
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