Russia plans to commission first floating nuclear power plant in 2019
Source: Sohu.com Date: 2015-09-11
According to recent media reports, the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation (Rosatom) plans to commission the first floating nuclear power plant, Academician Lomonosov, in 2019 and will replace the soon-to-retire Bilibino nuclear power plant on the Chukchi Peninsula. Currently, 85% of the floating nuclear power plants have been completed, and port acceptance tests will be conducted before the end of this year.
The plutonium floating nuclear power plant will provide power for large-scale production facilities, ports and offshore platforms. Many countries are aware of the need for mobile nuclear power plants and are working hard to develop them, but Rosatom is stronger than its overseas competitors.
The chief builder of the plutonium floating nuclear power plant said that the 170-meter-long nuclear power station site was basically completed, which could provide accommodation for 78 crew members, and also built a storage room for new nuclear fuel and spent fuel. Only a few minor projects have yet to be completed.
As this is the first floating nuclear power plant in history, priority is given to reliability, safety and detailed plant testing. The floating nuclear power plant is comparable to the Arctic flagship nuclear-powered icebreaker (currently also being built at the Baltic Shipyard) in terms of technology, complexity, steel consumption and other parameters. However, the construction cost of the floating nuclear power plant is 30% lower than that of the Arctic, and the cost of the next floating unit is expected to decrease by at least 25%.