ArmInfo. The Armenian Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) has officially ceased operations as of April 1 to undergo a comprehensive planned-preventive maintenance (PPM) cycle, as announced by David Khudatyan, Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure, at a government meeting on April 2. He added that it will remain offline for a period of five months.
Khudatyan noted that measures will be taken during the shutdown to extend the plant's operational lifespan until 2036. The NPP will be out of service for a total of 153 days, significantly exceeding the 45 days required for scheduled maintenance.
Recall, the RA government allocated 63.2 billion drams from the state budget for the second extension program. A new nuclear power unit is scheduled to be built in the country by 2036. The country's authorities are leaning toward the need to build a plant with a small modular reactor. Proposals from five countries are currently being reviewed, including Russia, the United States, China, South Korea, and France. However, based on the statement by Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who said that Armenia's existing nuclear power plant has the potential to operate until 2046, it can be concluded that the issue of a new nuclear power plant for Armenia is being put on the back burner.
