Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers has approved a reviewed project to improve the South Ukraine nuclear power plant's water supply system, raising its yearly power output by around 2.5 terawatt hours. Energoatom declared that the project intends to eliminate restrictions on the plant caused by the lacking cooling capacity of the Tashlykskaya reservoir.
Energoatom, the state-run operator of all 15 of Ukraine's nuclear power reactors, added that the authorization was given through a government decree dated Jan. 13. After accomplishment of the project, the supplementary annual electricity production of the plant will be between 0.5 TWh and 2.5 TWh, according to Energoatom.
According to the Cabinet decree, the anticipated cost of construction and equipment offered for the project is approximately Hryvnia 986 million ($38 million), or much more than the estimation contained in the draft project plan the cabinet approved in December of Hryvnia 205 million ($8 million). A tender will be held this year for the supply of equipment for the project, which is to be achieved within 36 months. The South Ukraine plant is sited on the banks of Pivdennyi Buh river in the city of Yuzhnoukrayinsk, in the Mykolayiv district. It comprises three VVER-1000 reactors with a total installed capacity of 3000 MWe. Also close to the river are two twin-unit hydro power plants.
In 2014, the plant produced 18.6 billion kWh of electricity, or an increase of 5.8 billion kWh (31%) compared to 2013. In December, the board of the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine approved the unrelenting operation of unit 2 of the South Ukraine plant until the end of 2025. The unit was closed on 10 May, two days before the expiration of its design lifespan, for significant improvement over 300 days costing $114 million to enable a 10-year life extension.
