ArmInfo.The component of the scientific-technical activities should be considered when the new tariff for the Armenian Power Plant is set, General Director of Armenian Scientific-Research Institute on Nuclear Plants Operation (Armatom), Professor Vahram Petrosyan stated answering to Arminfo's question on June 30.
According to him currently the Institute is not financed by state budget, which is unprecedented considering the international experience. In this light there is a need to involve the scientific technical component in the new tariff for the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant.
On June 20 Public Services Regulation Commission had made a decision that repayment of the Russian $270 mln loan, provided to Armenia for extending the life of the Armenian nuclear power plant till 2027, will be carried out at the expense of the tariff set for the NPP. The amount of tariff will be set later. Emphasizing the importance of the program Vahram Petrosyan did not rule out the possibility of extending the lifecycle for more than ten years. , Vahram Petrosyan stressed. He also informed that as a result of the modernization coefficient of efficiency will increase, due to which the Russian loan will be repaid.
Earlier, in an interview with ArmInfo, the Deputy General Director of the Armenian NPP, the director of the extension program Hera Sevikyan informed that in 2018 the main activities will be aimed at the modernization of the reactor cooling systems, which will further improve the safety of the unit, approaching the world standards. In addition, in 2018, a huge amount of work is to be done to modernize equipment for generating electricity - turbines, capacitors, separators, output transformers. Within this stage, it is planned to increase the unit's capacity by 17-20% without increasing the fuel consumption, which will make it possible to increase the efficiency. At present, the NPP unit operates at 92% capacity, which is about 380 megawatts. After modernization, the capacity will increase to 470-480 megawatts, which will become a solid addition, allowing without additional problems to begin servicing the loan of the Russian Federation.