India
The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) is one of the largest nuclear power station in India. It is situated in Kudankulam, a town in the Tirunelveli district of Tamil Nadu. It is being constructed within the scope of the Russia-India Inter-Governmental Agreement. KKNPP is being built by the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited (NPCIL) and Russia's ASE Group of Companies, an engineering division of Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation.
It is scheduled to have six VVER-1000 reactors with an installed capacity of 1,000 MW each. The Unit 1 of the plant was synchronised with the southern power grid in October 2013 and is generating electricity. The second Unit with capacity 1,000 MW had become critical for the first time in July 2016. It was connected to the grid in August 2016 and it started commercial operation in October 2016.
The construction of Unit 3 and 4 is underway. The ‘first pour of concrete’ for Unit 3 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant, which marks the beginning of the construction of the project, happened on June 29, 2017. The Units 3 and 4 Reactor buildings foundation slabs have already been made. The construction is on schedule.
The delivery of equipment has already started. In March 2018 the first batch of equipment for turbine building of Unit 3 of Kudankulam NPP was completed and shipped out. Particularly, the first two high pressure heaters (HPH) were dispatched for turbine building of KKNPP. Also the reactor pressure vessel for KKNPP Unit 3 will be delivered by the end of the current year followed by KKNPP Unit 4 that will be completed next year.
Last year, during the 18th annual India-Russia summit held in St Petersburg, both countries signed the general framework agreement for the construction of Units 5 and 6 of KKNPP and an inter-governmental credit protocol necessary for the implementation of the project was also signed. Currently intensive ground and infrastructural work is underway for Unit 5 and 6.
The Strategic Vision adopted in December 2014 for strengthening cooperation in the peaceful use of atomic energy between Russia and India stipulates that at least 12 units of Russian design are to be commissioned in India within the next 20 years. As far as we know, the Indian government is actively searching for sites to build new power plants. In 2015, India declared its intent to allot a new site for the construction of power plant of Russian design with enhanced-capacity units.
Bangladesh
The key project is Rooppur NPP, with two WWER-1200 reactors, with the total capacity of 2400 MW. It is under construction according to the Russian design at the Rooppur village of Ishwardi Upazilla ,160 km from Dhaka, capital city of Bangladesh, in compliance with the General Contract signed on December 25, 2015. Atomstroyexport (Rosatom Engineering Division) is the General Contractor of Rooppur NPP construction.
For the first Bangladesh NPP, the Russian design with WWER-1200 reactors has been selected, which is successfully functioning at Unit 1 of Novovoronezh NPP-2, It is a III+ generation evolutionary model, which completely meets the international safety requirements. In 2017 the said Russian power unit was recognized as one of the world’s best nuclear power units, by the influential international publication POWER (USA).
In 2015-2016 the preparatory works of construction site were completed, the detailed design documentation and the documents for substantiation of licenses for layout and construction of the units were developed. In 2017 implementation of the Rooppur NPP project continued according to the schedule. On 04 November, 2017 the Bangladesh Regulatory Authority (BAERA) issued the license for design and construction of the plant. On30 November, 2017 the ‘First Concrete’ ceremony of the Unit 1 of Rooppur NPP was held. Construction of the Unit is progressing according to the set schedule. Currently 5000 T of cement is being used per day at the site, 4,200 persons are engaged in construction works.
On 08 July, 2018 Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority, BAERA issued the license for commencement of main construction of Unit 2 of Rooppur NPP.Heavy crane has been delivered to the Unit 1 construction site, which will be used to install ‘Molten Catcher’ - one of the most essential safety systems of the unit.
On July 14, 2018 the ‘First Concrete” ceremony marking the beginning of main construction of the 2nd Unit of Rooppur Nuclear Power Project held at Rooppur of Ishwardi.
Commencement of commercial operation of Rooppur NPP Unit 1 is scheduled for 2023, while Unit 2 for 2024. Each stage of Rooppur NPP construction is under strict supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and national regulatory authority.