BN-350 reactor

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Shevchenko BN350 nuclear fast reactor and desalination plant situated on the shore of the Caspian Sea. The former plant could generate 135 MWe and provide steam for an associated desalination plant. View of the interior of the reactor hall.
Shevchenko BN350 nuclear fast reactor and desalination plant situated on the shore of the Caspian Sea. The former plant could generate 135 MWe and provide steam for an associated desalination plant. View of the interior of the reactor hall.
BN350 desalination unit. View of the only nuclear-heated desalination unit in the world.
BN350 desalination unit. View of the only nuclear-heated desalination unit in the world.

The BN-350 was a sodium-cooled fast reactor nuclear power plant located at Aktau (formally known as Shevchenko from 1964-1992), Kazakhstan, situated on the shore of the Caspian Sea. Construction of the BN-350 Fast breeder reactor began in 1964, and the plant first produced electricity in 1973. In addition to providing power for the city (150 MWe), BN-350 was also used for producing plutonium and for desalination to supply fresh water (120,000 m³ fresh water/day) to the city.

The project lifetime of the reactor officially finished in 1993, and in June of 1994, the reactor was forced to shut down because of a lack of funds to buy fuel. By 1995, the plant's operating license had expired. The facility continued to operate far below capacity until reactor operations ceased in 1999, when plutonium-bearing spent fuel stopped being produced.

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