Belarus' largest, oldest power plant opened to tourists

MINSK, 29 August (BelTA) – Belarus' largest power plant – the Lukoml state district power plant – has been opened to tourists, the press service of the Belarusian Energy Ministry told BelTA.

Tourists will be able to take a guided tour in order to get familiar with the history of the flagship of the Belarusian power engineering industry. The tours have become available with assistance of municipal government agencies and the Energy Ministry. As part of a tour visitors will see the central control room, the machine hall, the combined cycle power unit, and switchboards of individual units.

Visitors will be able to learn how electricity and heat are generated, how the output capacity of the Lukoml state district power plant grew over time, what modernization has accomplished, and what role the power plant plays in the country's power grid today. The most interesting archive photos are available in the power plant's museum.

The Lukoml state district power plant is Belarus' oldest power plant. Its construction began in 1964. The first unit with the output capacity of 300MW was commissioned in 1969. In 2003-2013 the main equipment and auxiliary equipment of the Lukoml state district power plant were gradually upgraded. The ninth unit of the power plant was commissioned in 2014, increasing the overall output capacity of the power plant to 2,900MW.

The Lukoml state district power plant generates about 10 billion kWh of electricity every year. The electricity is fed to the national power grid through seven 330kV power lines to Minsk, Mogilev, Vitebsk, Orsha, Borisov, Polotsk, and Bobruisk and through five 110kV power lines towards Krupki, Chashniki, and Senno.