Khmelnytsky Nuclear Power Plant near the city of Netishen, Khmelnytsky region, Ukraine
Kyiv:
Ukraine’s Energy Ministry said on Monday that construction of four new nuclear reactors would begin this year to compensate for Russia’s occupation of the country’s largest nuclear power plant.
Energy Minister Herman Galushenko said in televised comments that all four new reactors will be located at the Khmelnytsky nuclear power plant in western Ukraine, ultimately making it Europe’s largest nuclear power plant.
Currently Europe’s largest Zaporozhye nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine has been under Russian control since March 2022, and its six reactors have been shut down.
Fierce fighting and power outages in the area have drawn international attention as the plant still needs electricity and water to cool its systems.
The minister said that the Khmelnytsky nuclear power plant will receive two reactors built according to American designs.
The plant dates back to the 1980s and currently houses two reactors. Two other projects had long been planned, but construction was delayed.
Galushchenko said: “The six reactors of the Khmelnytsky nuclear power plant will be able to produce electricity. It will be the largest nuclear power plant in Europe, even more powerful than the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant.”
Construction will take many years, he said, with the third reactor expected to be ready in about two and a half years, with others to follow.
Construction of the Khmelnytsky Nuclear Power Plant began in 1981 and became operational in 1986, the year after the Chernobyl disaster.
The original plan was to build four reactors, but due to the moratorium on new nuclear projects, construction on reactors three and four was halted.
Later, Ukraine signed an agreement with Russia to build the reactor, but the agreement was canceled in 2015.
The station plans to have two new AP1000 reactors designed by the American Westinghouse Electric Company. Early plans for reactors three and four would use the Soviet VVER-1000 design.
According to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the Khmelnytsky nuclear power plant has been without power since the Russian invasion and a nearby explosion caused windows to be smashed.
The International Atomic Energy Agency reported this month that the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant was surrounded by mines and violated safety standards.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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