03.04.2008 // PR and Mass Media Department of Atomenergoprom OJSC

Atomenergoprom presents its capacities in India

POWER-GEN India & Central Asia international exhibition, one of the biggest energy exhibitions in the region, has set off at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, India, today, Apr 3. Russia’s nuclear power industry is represented by Atomenergoprom OJSC and its subsidiaries: Atomstroyexport SJCS (Moscow), Russia’s leading engineering company, the only company in the world that is building five nuclear reactors at one and the same time, Atomenergoproekt engineering company (Moscow), Hydropress design bureau. Such high representation shows that Russia is interested in implementing joint nuclear energy projects in India and Asia-Pacific.

POWER-GEN India & Central Asia is to last till Apr 5. It has been organized by PennWell and Inter Ads companies with the support of the Ministry of Power and the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises of India. Among the participants in the exhibition are the biggest manufacturers and suppliers of equipment and technologies for nuclear power plants. Among the guests are high-ranking officials and big businessmen. This year POWER-GEN will feature the largest exhibition in the event’s eight year history.

Presently, Russia is the only country building a nuclear power plant in India: Atomstroyexport CJSC is constructing Kudankulam NPP in Tamil Nadu. The owner of the project is the Nuclear Power Corporation of India. The project has been designed by Atomenergoproekt (Moscow) and complies with the highest international safety standards. Kudankulam will have two 1,000MW WWER (pressurized water) reactors.

86% of the necessary equipment is already on the site with over 98% of the project documentation ready. The site is designed for six reactors. So, in the future Kudankulam may grow into one of the biggest NPPs in India.

The general designer of the project is Hydropress, the scientific manager – Kurchatov Institute. Over 100 Russian companies are involved in the construction, among them Atomenergomash, OMZ, Power Machines.

The key peculiarity of Kudankulam NPP is the use of improved equipment and passive safety systems in addition to traditional active ones. The following safety improvements have been applied under the project:

— modified reactor WWER-100/B412;
— passive residual heat removal system;
— passive core flooding system;
— passive quick boron injection system;
— improved active safety system channels;
— double containment;
— passive leak removal system;
— “trap” for melted core.

In Feb 2008 Russia and India concluded an inter-governmental framework agreement for the construction of four additional reactors at Kudankulam and for cooperation on other sites. According to the agreement, the reactors will be controlled by IAEA throughout their use.

Russia has built 31 reactors abroad. Their total capacity is 16.6mln KWh. Presently, Atomstroyexport is successfully building Bushehr NPP in Iran and Belene NPP in Bulgaria. After the launch of two reactors of Tianwan NPP, China agreed with Russia to build two more reactors.

Atomenergoprom OJSC is a state holding that is supposed to comprise 89 nuclear companies and to cover the whole range of nuclear services: from uranium mining to NPP construction and electricity production. Atomenergoprom’s companies will have a total of 175,000 employees and an annual production of 200bln RUR (5.5bln EUR). Atomenergoprom is one of the biggest players on the world market: it has a 40% share in the world’s uranium enrichment services, 17% in nuclear fuel production, 8% in uranium mining, 28% in NPP construction (10 reactors). The director of Atomenergoprom is Vladimir Travin, the chairman of the board of directors – Sergey Kiriyenko.