RA Energy Ministry: After the expiration of 2026 it will be clear when the second unit of the Armenian NPP will be disabled

ArmInfo. The agreement on a  comprehensive and expanded partnership, which Armenia intends to sign  with the European Union, provides for the closure of the Armenian  Nuclear Power Plant (ANPP). Commenting on this fact, the press  secretary of the Minister of Energy Infrastructures and Natural  Resources of the Republic of Armenia Vasak Tarposhyan noted that  according to the draft document, the station can be closed while  creating the appropriate capacities.

"The resource of the second  power unit of the Armenian nuclear power plant is not infinite, and  one day it will be decommissioned," the spokesman said, adding that  now the NPP is implementing a program to extend the lifetime of the  N2 power unit by 10 years - until 2026. "After the expiry of this  period, it will be clear when we put the unit out of operation,"  V.Tarposhyan  mentioned. 

 It should be noted that in the section of energy cooperation the  agreement notes the need to close Metsamor NPP and its a replacement  for other capacities that ensure Armenia's energy security. The EU  has been questioning its closure for years, but the Armenian  authorities categorically disagree, arguing that the station provides  not only energy security and independence of the country's energy  system, but also with its low tariff has a positive impact on the  social and economic development of Armenia.

The Armenian nuclear power plant consists of two units with Soviet  (Russian) WWER reactors. The first unit was commissioned in 1976, the  second - in 1980. In March 1989, after the Spitak earthquake, which  killed 25 thousand people, the station's work was stopped. In  November 1995, in connection with the most acute energy crisis, the  second power unit of the station with a capacity of 407.5 MW was  involved. In March 2014, the Armenian government decided to extend  the life of the second power unit by 10 years - until 2026. The  project is coordinated by the subsidiary structure of the State  Corporation Rosatom - JSC Rusatom Service. Completion of work is  planned for 2019. The Government of the Russian Federation allocated  a $ 270 million state export loan to Armenia and a $ 30 million grant  for these purposes. In March 2015, the Joint Coordination Committee  (JCC) was established to implement the program. So far, there have  been five meetings of the JCC.