Belene Nuclear Power Plant

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The Belene Nuclear Power Plant (Bulgarian: Атомна електроцентрала „Белене“) is a nuclear power plant currently under construction 3 km from Belene and 11 km from Svishtov in Pleven Province, northern Bulgaria, near the Danube River. It is planned to substitute four outdated VVER-440 V230 reactors of the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant.

Belene Nuclear Power Plant
Data
Country Bulgaria
Owner Bulgaria's National Electricity Company
Operator Kozloduy NPP Plc
Built 1984
Reactors
Reactors under construction 2 (2000 MW)
Power
Capacity  MW
Other details
As of July 25, 2007

Contents

[edit] History

[edit] Early project

The Belene site was approved for the construction of a second Bulgarian NPP by a Council of Ministers decree on 20 March 1981. The site was handed to the Ministry of Economics on 31 December 1981 and the documentation for the construction site's preparation was prepared in the late 1980 and early 1981 by Energoproekt Sofia. The site's preparation in accordance with the draft projects began in the early 1981.

The foundations of the future power plant were laid in 1987 after the design of Atomenegroproekt Kiev from the USSR and Energoproekt Sofia. The design suggested the construction of four VVER-1000/V 320 reactors. Between 1988 and 1990 40% of the construction work of reactor 1 was finished and 80% of the equipment was supplied. The project was abandoned in 1990 due to the democratic changes in Bulgaria and only conservational work was done.

[edit] Restart

On 20 December 2002 the Council of Ministers made the decision to restart the project due to the future abandonment of four reactors of the Kozloduy NPP. The Ministry of Energetics began to renew the available equipment and examine the possible construction of the new nuclear plant. In February 2003 Minister Milko Kovachev sent letters to six leading companies in the sphere of nuclear energetics asking them to provide up-to-date technical, economic and financial information regarding the project.

A working group of experts was formed by an order of the Ministry of Energetics and Power Resources of 27 May 2003, which included experts from the Ministry of Energetics and Power Resources, the Ministry of Environment and Waters, the Ministry of Transport and Communication, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the Ministry of Healthcare, the Agency for Nuclear Regulation, the State Commission for Power Regulation, the State Agency for Civil Protection, the National Electric Company and BulAtom. A programme for the exprert commission's work was approved on 4 July 2003.

In late October 2006 the offer of the Russian Atomstroyexport, the French Framatome (Areva), and the German Siemens using third-generation VVER-1000/V-446B reactors was approved by the National Electric Company. The offer was selected due to the highest safety level guaranteed by several new independent active and passive safety systems, as well as the option for Atomstroyexport to buy back the old unit supplied in the 1980s. Another reasons was the 60-year operation term. According to the Atomstroyexport president, the first unit would be in operation by 2013 and the second a year later.[1] On 7 December 2008 the European Commission gave its favourable opinion to the NPP, saying that it met all requirements of articles 41 to 44 of the Euratom Treaty.[2] A favourable opinion of the EC is one of the requirements for a Euratom loan.

On 18 January 2008, Atomstroyexport and Bulgaria's National Electric Company (NEC) signed the contract for the design, construction and installation of blocks 1 and 2 of the Belene NPP.[3][4]


[edit] Technical features

The nuclear power plant will operate two AES-92 VVER-1000 reactors, designed by Atomstroyexport and using control and automation systems from Carsib, a joint consortium of Areva and Siemens.[5] The construction costs €4 billion.[3] The Belene NPP will be operated by consortium in which NEC will have 51% of shares and other investors will be picked from the shortlist of Belgium's Electrabel, CEZ Group of the Czech Republic, E.ON and RWE of Germany, and Italy's Enel.[5]

It was announced in May 2005 that the electricity produced by the Belene NPP would cost between 3.2 and 3.7 eurocents per kW·h, meaning it would be the most expensive electric power ever produced in Bulgaria. For comparison, the plant producing the most expensive power in the country is currently the Bobovdol Thermal Power Plant selling the National Electric Company electricity for 4.85 stotinki or 2.48 eurocents per kW·h, and the Kozloduy NPP produces electricity for 1.49 stotinki (0.76 eurocents) as of 2005.[6]

[edit] Controversy

There is controversy over the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), which "does not contain adequate information on the seismic conditions, nor does it address beyond design basis accidents or give details of the potential impacts of decommissioning".[7] Furthermore, following legal action by environmental groups, the authors of the original EIA confirmed, in court, that it was flawed and would require a new EIA once a designer and builder were appointed. The total cost of the project is now estimated by the operator to be around €7 billion (€4 billion for the power stations plus associated infrastructure development costs).[7]

Environmental organizations Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth (Europe), Urgewald, Bankwatch, World Information Service on Energy and the Bulgarian NGO BeleNE! oppose the plant's construction, and have expressed the following concerns:[8][9]

  • negative effect on the tourist industry and the agriculture of northern Bulgaria
  • safety concerns over the Russian technology used (VVER-1000)
  • location in a seismic active zone
  • the expense of the project
  • risk of terrorist attack
  • problems with the transportation, procession and preservation of the nuclear waste.

Concerns regarding the construction of the plant have mainly been felt in nearby Romania, with articles in the newspapers such as Cotidianul, România Liberă and Ziarul even going as far as comparing the project with Chernobyl despite a new generation of VVER reactors is to be used, and not the cheaper graphite-moderated RBMK series like Chernobyl's.[10]

In short, critics say the project is economically flawed, open to corruption and mismanagement, and will cement Russian dominance of Bulgaria's energy sector. The government says global energy pressures make the project necessary.[11]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Цанев, Белчо. "Дадоха “Белене” на руснаците", Standart News, 2006-10-31. Retrieved on 2006-10-31. (Bulgarian) 
  2. ^ Template:Site news
  3. ^ a b Rene Beekman. "Belene contract signed between Bulgaria's NEC and Russia's Atomstroyexport", The Sofia Echo, 2008-01-18. Retrieved on 2008-01-26. 
  4. ^ Template error: argument title is required. 
  5. ^ a b Belene contract 'opens new prospects' for Russia in Europe. World Nuclear News (2008-01-18). Retrieved on 2008-01-26.
  6. ^ Khristo Nikolov. "АЕЦ "Белене" ще произвежда най-скъпия ток в България", Sega AD. Retrieved on 2008-01-20. (Bulgarian) 
  7. ^ a b The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2007 pp. 31-32.
  8. ^ Environmental Organizations condemn European Commission Decision on Bulgarian Reactor
  9. ^ "Press release of Greenpeace about the Belene project". Retrieved on 2006-10-31. (Romanian) 
  10. ^ "Атака срещу “Белене”", Standart News, 2006-10-18. Retrieved on 2006-10-31. (Bulgarian) 
  11. ^ Nuclear ambitions fan controversy in Bulgaria

[edit] External links

Coordinates: 43°38′N, 25°08′E