Measures in pipeline to steady Belarusian power grid after nuclear station’s launch

A suite of measures is being developed in Belarus to secure a reserve margin that will be needed for the steady operation of the national power grid after the first power-generating unit of the Belarusian nuclear power plant is commissioned in 2018. The information was released by Valery Porshnev, Deputy Chief Engineer of the Belarusian national electrical company Belenergo, during the online conference hosted by the BelTA website on 12 December to discuss better conditions of getting electricity and the development of the energy infrastructure in Belarus.

In his words, the ongoing projects to modernize existing cogeneration power plants and state district power plants take into account the operation mode that Belarusian power-generating facilities will use after 2018. “We are preparing our generating facilities to work alongside the nuclear power plant in its nominal mode. The ongoing modernization of power-generating facilities, primarily the installation of short-response gas-vapor units and gas units will allow responding to changes of the situation promptly,” explained Valery Porshnev.

The official remarked that taking into account peculiarities of the nuclear power plant’s operation several schemes to manage energy resources are suggested for the sake of securing the reserve margin. One of them is using units with short response times. “If necessary, the short-response units that we will have will allow compensating for the suspended operation of nuclear power plant units during planned repairs. It is but one of the measures. In other words, we are working on an effective solution to the problem,” he said.

Experts say that tuning the output of a nuclear power plant during its operation is next to impossible because power-generating units produce 100% output while the fuel lasts. Therefore, during the highest and lowest power consumption periods the entire power grid is used if necessary to decrease or increase electricity generation by sources less effective than a nuclear power plant. In several countries hydropower plants are used for that, a cascade of such power plants is under construction in Belarus.

Construction workers started pouring concrete into the foundation of facilities that will make up the first power-generating unit of the Belarusian nuclear power plant at the Ostrovets site in November. The Belarusian nuclear power plant will boast two power-generating units with the total capacity of up to 2,400MW (1,200MW each). The Russian design AES-2006 has been chosen to build the power plant. The design is fully compliant with international standards and IAEA recommendations. The Russian public joint-stock company OAO NIAEP – ZAO Atomstroyexport is the general designer and the general contractor for building the power plant. The timeline for implementing the project is stipulated by the general contract. The first power-engineering unit of the nuclear power plant is scheduled for launch in November 2018.

Belarus and Russia signed the general contract to build the Belarusian nuclear power plant in July 2012. The cost of building the installation is primarily covered by a state export loan granted by Russia. In line with the relevant intergovernmental agreement the loan can provide up to $10 billion for 25 years to cover 90% of the cost of every contract between the Russian company ZAO Atomstroyexport and the Belarusian state institution Directorate for Nuclear Power Plant Construction.