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Russia Considers Construction Of Medium-Sized VVER-600 Reactor

By David Dalton
13 February 2013

13 Feb (NucNet): The joint scientific and technical board of Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom and nuclear plant operator Rosenergoatom have accepted for consideration proposals for a new two-loop nuclear reactor presented to them by designers from OKB Gidropress.

Rosatom said it will now consider whether to go ahead and offer the VVER-600 for construction at nuclear plants both in Russia and overseas.

Rosatom said the medium-sized VVER-600 unit is based on the components and processes of the existing AES-2006 type VVER-1200 unit, two of which are under construction in Russia at Leningrad II and two at Novovoronezh II.

Rosatom said maximum borrowing of main components from the VVER-1200 allows for a reduction of reactor design development for the VVER-600 and simplification of components delivery to the site.

According to Rosenergoatom, the VVER-600 has the same levels of safety required by Generation III+ reactors and a designed lifetime of 60 years.

The VVER-600 is also designed to contain core melt inside the reactor vessel during a severe “beyond design basis” accident.

OKB Gidropress says advantages of two-loop designs over four-loop designs include a reduction of reactor specific metal consumption, reduction of containment inner diameter and a reduction of operational costs by 20 to 25 percent. They also say units can be better integrated into a small electricity grid.

VVER, or WWER reactors (from the Russian Vodo-Vodyanoi Energetichesky Reactor), are a series of pressurised water reactor designs originally developed in the Soviet Union, and now Russia, by OKB Gidropress. Their power output ranges from 440 megawatts to 1,200 megawatts.

According to OKB Gidropress, VVER reactors of various capacities are in commercial operation at 18 nuclear power plant sites in Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Finland, Bulgaria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and China.

VVER reactors are also under construction at Kudankulam in India and Tianwan in China.

In December 2012, specialists working on the development of Atomenergoproekt’s Generation III+ VVER-TOI light water reactor unit said they were “in the final stage” of the project with documents being prepared for approval by state nuclear corporation Rosatom and Russia’s regulator Rostechnadzor.

The 1,300-megawatt VVER-TOI (typical optimised, with enhanced information) design has an upgraded pressure vessel, improved core design to increase cooling reliability, and further passive safety features including a 72-hour grace period requiring no operator intervention after shutdown.

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