WWER-type reactor plants

Water-cooled water-moderated power reactor (WWER) belongs to the most prevailing type of light water reactors. Water is used as coolant and moderator in the reactors of this type. Operation of WWER and PWR reactors is based on this principle. The WWER is not an analog of PWR referred to this type, because there are essential differences both in design and materials used.

OKB”GIDROPRESS” is a world leader in the number of implemented WWER-type reactor designs. 76 WWER Units have been constructed in all.

Safety

Safety is a convincing argument in favor of the choice of state-of-the-art WWER reactors. In last WWER-type reactor designs the newest safety approaches are implemented based on the principle of defense-in-depth, several safety levels and optimal combination of multichannel passive and active safety systems.

The lessons of “accidents of the century” at “Three Mile Island” NPP (USA, PWR-type reactor) and Chernobyl NPP (USSR, RBMK-type reactor) are taken into account in WWER nuclear power plants. Based on the results of assessment of causes and consequences of the accident at “Fukushima” NPP (Japan, BWR-type reactor), the additional safety analyses (stress tests) have been performed with account of external extreme impacts. The analyses results are taken into consideration in new designs of reactor plants with WWER; some additional measures are implemented at operating NPPs on the basis of these analyses. It allows assuring further reliable development of domestic nuclear power engineering and WWER technology export.

Operation

At present WWER reactors developed at OKB “GIDROPRESS” are operated at 21 NPPs in Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Finland, Bulgaria, Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, China and India. They are 22 WWER-440 Units with the total power of 10120 MW and 36 WWER-1000 Units with the total power of 34000 MW. Novovoronezh NPP Unit 6 of 1200 MW with the first Generation 3+ reactor plant in the world has been commissioned. Activities are under way on extension of the first generation reactor equipment service life.

Construction

Currently, the construction of power units in Russia continues: Kursk NPP-2 and in foreign countries: India, China, Belarus, Turkey and Bangladesh.

All the designs have the following common features: high quality standards of work and maximum requirements for the safety level.

Prospects

Woks on development of the reactor plants for NPP in Finland, India, Hungary and Bangladesh have been already started.