Belarus to welcome IAEA’s emergency preparedness review mission on 8-20 October

MINSK, 25 September (BelTA) – An Emergency Preparedness Review (EPREV) mission of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) will work in Belarus on 8-20 October, BelTA learned from Lilia Dulinets, Deputy Director of the Nuclear Energy Department of the Belarusian Energy Ministry, during the Nuclear Technologies Day hosted by the Belarusian State University on 25 September.

Lilia Dulinets said: “The mission will stay in Belarus from 8 through 20 October. The Emergencies Ministry is the main body responsible for organizing the mission on the Belarusian side. Certainly, all the agencies involved in the nuclear energy program – the Energy Ministry, the Healthcare Ministry, the Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Ministry – will participate.”

The Energy Ministry representative confirmed that they look forward to the first delivery of nuclear fuel to the Belarusian nuclear power plant by the end of the year. Fuel charging, physical launch, and power startup are scheduled for 2019. The Russian side has confirmed the power plant will be authorized for operation by the end of 2019.

Asked about the integration of the nuclear power plant into the economy, Lilia Dulinets noted that there will be no excessive supply of electricity. “We intended to use the nuclear power plant for our own needs. If export opportunities are available, then, certainly, calculations will have to be made to evaluate the economic advisability,” she added. Speaking about the tariff policy, the official said she believes that the launch of the Belarusian nuclear power plant will help deter the growth of energy prices.

The Belarusian nuclear power plant is being built using the Russian standard Generation III+ design AES-2006 near Ostrovets, Grodno Oblast. The first power-generating unit is scheduled for commissioning in 2019, with the second one to go online in 2020. The first batch of nuclear fuel is supposed to be delivered to the nuclear power plant till the end of 2018.