Construction of a new nuclear power plant with a total capacity of 2,136 mW will start in central Russia next year, local authorities said Saturday.
The new NPP, comprised of two units and using third-generation reactors, will be built under a federal program for the development of Russia's nuclear energy sector (2007-10) near the city of Novovoronezh, about 310 miles south of Moscow.
Voronezh Governor Vladimir Kulakov said the project, known as Novovoronezh NPP-2, has a price tag of 110 billion rubles ($4.1 billion) with 2.5 billion rubles (about $100 million) due to come from the federal budget.
He did not say where the rest of the funding will come from.
Kulakov said the first generating unit is to be put into operation in 2012 and the second in 2013.
The Novovoronezh NPP-1, the first nuclear power plant in Russia to use water-cooled power reactors, underwent an upgrade, extending its life span until 2016-2017, but it is unable to meet increasing electricity demand in the region. |
