Expert: The role of the Armenian NPP for the entire socio-economic  life of the republic is great

ArmInfo.The role of the Armenian nuclear power plant for the energy system of Armenia and the entire socio-economic life of the republic is very large. On March  20, during a panel discussion "Prospects for Development Atomic  Industry in Armenia" on UN National Energy Expert Ara Marjanyan  stated.

According to him, for the period from 2003 to 2018, the share of  power generation at the plant did not fall below 28% of the total  output in the republic. True, in 2018 the share of the ANPP was only  26%, but this is the result of the start of work on the modernization  of the second power unit of the plant. In certain periods, for  example, from 2005 to 2009 the share of NPP exceeded 40%.

In addition, the ANPP is today the station with the lowest  electricity tariff, about 1-1.5 cents. For example, in 2018, the  electricity generated by the ANPP cost 3 drams, while it was 24 drams  at the Yerevan TPP, 26 drams at the Hrazdan TPP and 38 drams at small  hydropower plants. Thus, the expert stated that the Armenian Nuclear  Power Plant reduced the system-wide cost of electricity, keeping it  at a level acceptable for the economy and the population. The basic  kind of the station in ensuring the energy security of the country  has a significant role. "Neither small hydropower plants, nor  renewable energy sources possess this valuable quality, and,  therefore, cannot be considered as an alternative to the ANPP," the  expert emphasized. In his opinion, in the foreseeable future, new  facilities that actually affect the state's energy security can be  either a new nuclear power unit or a new large hydroelectric power  station on the Debit river with a multi-year regulation reservoir.

The consistent development of the nuclear power industry, Ara  Marjanyan continued, is one of the four most important provisions of  the energy strategy, and, more generally, the national security of  Armenia. It was also confirmed by numerous comments by the RA Prime  Minister Nikol Pashinyan on the impossibility of closing the ANPP  without creating the corresponding facilities. According to the  expert, the modernization of the second power unit of the Armenian  NPP will not only ensure the country's energy security until 2026,  but will also significantly reduce greenhouse gases. "In the long  term, the construction of a new nuclear unit and the consistent  development of the entire cluster of knowledge, skills and  technologies related to the ANPP to ensure sustainable socio-economic  development of the republic will strengthen the energy and national  security of the Republic of Armenia," the expert concluded.