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MOSCOW, 20 June (BelTA) - Construction of the Belarusian nuclear power plant is proceeding according to the schedule. There are no insurmountable issues, Kirill Komarov, First Deputy Director General for Corporate Development and International Business at Rosatom, told a press briefing on the sidelines of Atomexpo 2017 in Moscow, BelTA has learned.

“Projects in all newcomer countries do not proceed smoothly as on paper. But there are no insurmountable problems. Everything goes according to schedule in Belarus,” Kirill Komarov said. We are set to reach the most important stage in early 2018 which will mark the completion of the first unit.

When asked about the safety of the Belarusian NPP design Kirill Komarov noted that Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant operates the unit of the same design. Leningrad NPP will launch a similar unit soon. The same design plants will be built in Finland, Hungary, Turkey, Egypt, and Bangladesh. “It is a proven, reliable, mass-production project which has undergone numerous expertise many times. In terms of the implementation of the project I would like to say that it is under very close supervision of not only Belarusian customer and regulator but all international organizations,” Kirill Komarov said.

Belarus has hosted IAEA missions and inspections of the World Association of Nuclear Operators. Belarus has also conducted stress tests for compliance of the Ostrovets NPP with the post-Fukushima requirements and will send the findings to the European Commission in September.

When commenting on Lithuania’s complaints about Belarus NPP, Kirill Komarov opined that these concerns are not about real technological issues. It is about the fact that Lithuania was forced to shut down the Ignalina NPP when joining the EU. The plant supplied 65% of electricity in the country. No new project has been implemented. “I see these speculations that come from one country as unfriendly competition. Neither we nor our Belarusian colleagues hide anything. We are absolutely open. Anyone (a journalist or an independent observer) may visit the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant,” Kirill Komarov said.

He also recalled that the official results of all inspections by the IAEA in Belarus are available on the official website of the IAEA. More so the IAEA recommended 14 practices applied in Belarus for use in other countries. “This is is an independent international organization which is difficult to suspect of any sympathy to Belarus. These are independent experts, highly-qualified professionals,” he said.

The Belarusian nuclear power plant is a project to build a VVER-1200 type nuclear power plant 18km away from Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The BelNPP will have two power-generating units with the total output capacity of up to 2,400MW (2x1,200MW). The first power-generating unit will be commissioned in 2019, the second – in 2020.

Currently Rosatom is implementing 8 nuclear reactor construction projects in Russia and 34 abroad.