Energoatom moves ahead with plans for new four-unit AP1000 plant

The country's nuclear power operator said that as part of Ukraine's plans to increase its nuclear energy capacity there has been a search for suitable sites for new nuclear, with the Chyhyryn site in the Cherkasy region the most promising. It was the site chosen in the 1970s and 1980s for a new power plant, but work on the nuclear power project was halted post-Chernobyl, in 1989. As a result, the newly constructed satellite town of Orbita, built for construction workers and future staff of a power plant at the site and with a proposed population of 20,000, has been largely abandoned.

Energoatom Chairman Petro Kotin said: "Energoatom intends to revive Orbita, making it one of the most modern towns like Netishyn, Yuzhnoukrainsk or Varash. The successful implementation of the plans is, of course, a significant investment in the post-war recovery and maintenance of the country’s energy security. The introduction of innovative nuclear technologies will make Ukraine a leader in power industry with unique experience and its own process engineering solutions."

The company said that the first step in implementing the plan was the decision by Chyhyryn City Council to issue a permit for the development of a land management project for permanent use of the land by Energoatom and the transfer to the company of land plots with a total area of 38.1493 hectares.

Ukraine has 15 reactors generating half its electricity at four existing nuclear power plants, including the six-unit Zaporizhzhia plant which has been under Russian military control since early March 2022. The country has plans for nine Westinghouse AP1000 units, including at the existing nuclear plants of Khmelnitsky, Rivne and South Ukraine.