18 Sep 2018 14:10

Russia, China confirm plans for reactor startup of Tianwan 4 in Dec

MOSCOW. Sept 18 (Interfax) - Russia and China have confirmed plans for reactor startup of the fourth power generating unit of the Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant before year-end.

"Startup of power unit N4 is planned in December 2018," according to the protocol of a meeting of the Russian-Chinese intergovernmental commission for energy cooperation held on Monday.

As earlier reported, an engineering group from Rosatom subsidiary ASE began startup procedures by loading fuel into the reactor at the end of August-beginning of September. Once that operation is completed and all necessary startup measures have been carried out, the reactor will be brought to minimum controlled reactor power, after which the power startup stage will begin. Rosatom chief Alexei Likhachev said that was expected to happen before the end of February 2019.

Rosatom and China's National Energy Administration signed a framework contract in June 2018 for the construction of the seventh and eighth power generating units of the Tianwan NPP. The seventh unit should be launched in 2026 and the eighth in 2027.

Russia has already put the first phase of the Tianwan NPP - the first and second units - into operation. The third unit was started up in August 2017 and ASE handed the unit to the plant owner and operator Jangsu Nuclear Power Corporation (JNPC) for a 24-month warranty period of operation in March this year.