Mangistau NPP power unit repaired and operating following emergency shutdown - Kazakh authorities

AKTAU. July 6 (Interfax) - Repair work at the Mangistau Nuclear Power Plant power unit, which was shut down on Monday, has been completed, the press service of the akim of the Mangistau region reported.

"On July 6, the repair work on power unit No.1 at the Mangistau NPP was completed. At 05:51, the power unit was put into operation," the report says.

Mangistau NPP employees worked around the clock, the press service said. "Repairs started on July 4 at 21:50, as it took quite a few hours to cool down the power unit's boiler," the service said.

On the evening of July 3, there was a forced shutdown of power unit No. 1 at the Mangistau NPP. Due to the emergency shutdown of the power unit, there was a surge in power to the 220 kV Aktau - Atyrau - Uralsk - UES of Russia transit transmission line, the result of which was the emergency automatic shutdown of the 220 kV Tengiz - Beyneu lines. Because of this, the power system of the Mangistau region switched to isolated operation with a decrease in frequency and disconnection of consumers. Then, the accident affected the Atyrau power hub with the introduction into isolated operation (from the 220 kV transit transmission line) of power plants belonging to Tengizchevroil (the operator of the development of the Tengiz field), NCOC (the operator of Kashagan), the Atyrau Heating and Power Plant, the Atyrau Oil Refinery, the CPC-K pipeline, halfthe city of Atyrau and districts of the region.

A number of industrial facilities in the Atyrau region have been transferred to backup power sources; in the Mangistau region, industrial facilities are currently receiving electricity with restrictions.