Bilibino’s units being shut down for decommissioning

The first of the three 12 MWe EGP-6 light water graphite-moderated reactors to be taken offline was Bilibino Unit 2. Unit 3 is scheduled to be shut down on 11 December, with Unit 4 following on 22 December. The first unit was shut down in 2018 and its used nuclear fuel removed to a storage pool.

Bilibino Nuclear Power Plant, in Russia’s Arctic north east, has been operating for 50 years in the permafrost zone, with its reactors operating for a combined 190 reactor-years, generating 11.6 billion kWh of electricity.

Decommissioning is expected to last about eight years, with Andrey Kuznetsov, Chief Engineer of Bilibino NPP, saying: "It will begin with obtaining a Rostekhnadzor licence and will conclude with the full implementation of the work in accordance with the design documentation. Specialists will need to carry out a comprehensive range of operations, including spent fuel removal, dismantling equipment and structures, and waste management - all of which will require decades of work."

The beginning of full site rehabilitation is expected to occur from around 2054.

Rosatom said that Bilibino's decommissioning experience will be unique, in terms of both the northern conditions and also because it is the first such Russian site to shut down its power units simultaneously. Unloading of the used nuclear fuel is expected to last about two years.

Its capacity has been replaced by the floating nuclear power plant (FNPP), the Akademik Lomonosov, which has a capacity of 70MW and which will be providing electricity and heat to the region.

Konstantin Kholopov, Director of the Bilibino NPP, said: "We've been preparing for the transition to this new reality for the NPP and the town of Bilibino for years: a replacement power centre and other infrastructure have been built and are already operational. Furthermore, electricity will be supplied to us from Pevek, where the FNPP is located: even during the site selection stage, its capacity was planned to be used to supply power to Bilibino, among other cities."