Most important hub of the Center power system
covering 19 territorial entities of Russian Federation
40 km
from the regional center
(Kursk city)
The share of Kursk NPP in the installed capacity of all power plants of the Central Black Earth economic region exceeds 50%. It supplies electric power to most industrial enterprises of the Kursk Region (over 90%).
In 2013, a decision was made to build two new power units of the replacement plant, Kursk NPP-2 with unique new VVER-TOI reactors. First cubic meters of concrete were laid in the foundation bed of the reactor building of power unit No. 1 on April 29, 2018.
26 508,9mln kWh
of electric power were generated by the NPP in 2020
4 000MW
installed capacity of 4 power units
«RBMK type reactors with the capacity of 1,000 MW are the “heart” of Kursk NPP-1
Kursk NPP became the second plant featuring RBMK-1000 reactors after Leningrad NPP launched in 1973. The plant was constructed in two stages: first stage - power units No. 1 and No. 2, second stage - power units No. 3 and No. 4. They were commissioned in 1976-1985.
Water-cooled graphite-moderated pressure-tube boiling reactors are employed at Kursk Nuclear Power Plant. This reactor is designed for generation of saturated steam under a pressure of 7.0 MPa.
Each unit has separate rooms for reactors and the relevant auxiliary equipment, fuel transfer systems,and main control rooms. All four units of Kursk NPP have a common turbine hall and a room for gas scrubbing and for specialized water purification systems.
Each power unit includes:
The process flow chart of a power unit with an RBMK reactor is as follows: the power unit comprises a single circuit; steam supplied to the turbines is formed directly in the reactor as the coolant boils while passing through it. Ordinary purified water circulating along the closed loop is used as the coolant. Fuel contained in fuel assemblies is placed in process channels, where a chain fission reaction occurs generating a lot of heat.
Heat generated in the nuclear reactor is removed by water circulating through the process channels along the repeated forced circulation circuit. The steam-water mixture flows from the reactor to the drum separators, where it is separated into steam and water. Dry saturated steam is supplied to the bladesof the turbine. Exhaust steam from the turbine enters the condensers to be cooled down there by water from the cooling pond.
After purification, heating and deaeration (degassing), condensate returns to the drum separator? Whereit is mixed with feed water and supplied to the reactor fuel channels. Generators producing electric energy are installed on the same shaft as the turbines.
3 200MW
rated heat outputof the reactor
45years
service life of the main equipment of the reactor unit
Newest Russian design project
The VVER-TOI is a standard design of a two-unit generation 3+ NPP with improved technicaland economic performance with reactor units based on the VVER technology (water-cooled water-moderated power reactors).
The design has been developed in the state-of-the-art information-technology design environment.
The VVER-TOI is designed to ensure the competitiveness of the Russian VVER technology in the international market and is focused on the future serial construction in Russia and overseas.
The use of its basic configuration in individual projects of various nuclear power plants does not require any changes in the main conceptual, structural or layout solutions.
Standardized solutions adopted in the project will be developed as a serial model of the power unit. Based on previously implemented projects of NPPs with VVER power units, the design and structural solutions have been optimized in order to improve safety and reliability, to improve technical and economic performance at the operation phase and to reduce the cost of the power unit at the construction phase.
The application of the Multi-D technology makes it possible to optimize the construction time, cost and quality, creates an information model of the power unit and enables its further information support and use.
The engineering data management system makes it possible to accumulate all collected information concerning the project and use it at all phases of the NPP life cycle: from design to decommissioning.
The VVER-TOI reactor is a shell-type water-cooled water-moderated power reactor. The reactor is housed in a sealed protective containment structure. It prevents any external effects or radionuclide release into the environment in case of a hypothetical accident.
Water with boric acid, which concentration varies during operation, is the coolant and the neutron moderator of this reactor. Low enriched uranium dioxide is used as a fuel in the reactor core. The heat balance diagram of the power unit contains two coolant circulation circuits.
The primary circuit is radioactive. It consists of the reactor, the main circulation pumps, steam generators, and the pressurizer. The primary circuit is intended for heat removal from the reactor and transfer to water in the secondary circuit.
The secondary circuit is non-radioactive. It includes steam generators, steam pipes, steam turbines, separator-reheaters, feed pumps and pipelines, deaerators, and regenerative heaters.
3 300MW
rated heat output of the reactor
60years
service life of the main equipment of the reactor unit
The safety of RBMK and VVER power units is based on the self-protection of the reactor unit and the defense-in-depth concept, which involves the operation of several safety barriers.
VVER-TOI power units being constructed are characterized by an unprecedentedly low risk of release of ionizing radiation and radioactive substances into the environment. This is achieved through the use of state-of-the-art protective and containment technologies in the safety system.
The NPP safety technology is based entirely on the defense-in-depth concept. This means the presence of physical barriers preventing the release of ionizing radiation and radioactive substances into the environment.
The concept involves protection of the barriers through prevention of a damage to the plant or to the barriers. It includes further measures to protect the population and the environment against any impacts if the barriers are damaged as a result of a co-occurrence of events, which has an extremely low probability.
VVER and RBMK reactors have a configuration of the reactor core ensuring “self-protection” or “self-regulation” of the reactor. When the reactor power increases and, consequently, the temperature of the reactor core rises, the nuclear reaction dies out due to natural feedback.
In order to stop the chain reaction quickly and efficiently, neutrons involved in this process must be absorbed. An absorber (boron carbide) is used to accomplish this. Rods containing this material are inserted into the reactor core to reduce the neutron flux level or to shut down the reactor completely.
Electromagnets are used as the drives for the rods to ensure their immersion into the reactor core. This principle guarantees the rods dropping even if the power unit is de-energized: the powered down electromagnets will stop holding the absorber rods and these will drop down by gravity.
Another way to stop the chain fission reaction is to increase the concentration of boric acid in the coolant: where necessary, the boric acid solution is used by numerous emergency systems.
The VVER-TOI design is characterized by an unprecedentedly low risk of release of ionizing radiation and radioactive substances into the environment.
A combination of active and passive safety systems incorporated in the VVER-TOI design prevents any damage to the reactor core for a period that is three times longer (at least 72 hours) than that of existing NPPs with previous-generation (3+) VVER reactors. The active safety systems are actuated from energy sources and give the personnel time to take measures, i.e. to engage additional equipment, to connect to alternative power supply routes, etc.
Passive safety systems operate based on natural processes and do not require any intervention by the personnel or an energy source.
Environmental safety is one of the key objectives of Kursk NPP
The basic principles and obligations in the field of environmental protection, sustainable use of natural resources, and environmental safety are set forth in the industrial safety and environmental policy of Kursk NPP.
Environmental measures are implemented at the enterprise in accordance with the requirements of the legislation of the Russian Federation and industry-specific regulations and directives.
The environmental condition of the premises of the industrial site, the buffer area and in the control area of Kursk NPP is evaluated by the NPP subdivisions as part of industrial environmental control and by supervisory bodies.
The automated radiation monitoring system (ARMS, 29 stations) constantly monitors the radiation level and transmits the necessary information to Kursk NPP and environmental radiation monitoring systems. The data from the ARMS is automatically transmitted to the Emergency Response Center of Rosenergoatom and the branch ARMS of ROSATOM, and is used to evaluate the actual radiation level in the vicinity of Kursk NPP.
The observation results show that under normal operating conditions, Kursk NPP makes virtually no impact on the environment. The information on the radiation level at the nuclear power plant is available online at: russianatom.ru.
Kursk Nuclear Power Plant Branch of Rosenergoatom JSC
Industrial area ABK-1, Kurchatov town,
Kursk Region 307250
Information and Public Relations Department:
Tel.: +7 (47131) 4-95-41
fax.: +7 (47131) 2-31-47
E-mail:
yiac@kunpp.ru