OREANDA-NEWS. Atomex Armenia Seminar for nuclear suppliers was held in Erevan, Armenia, on October 7, 2015. The Seminar was organized by Rosatom International Network jointly with the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources of the Republic of Armenia.

The Seminar was attended by representatives of the State Atomic Energy Corporation ROSATOM, Rusatom Service, Rusatom Overseas, Rosatom International Network. The participants from the Armenian side were the managers and representatives of the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources of the Republic of Armenia, Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, leading enterprises of Armenia operating in engineering, nuclear power, bank and financial sectors, etc.

The Seminar was devoted to the implementation of the life extension project for Unit 2 of Armenian NPP, involvement of Armenian suppliers in the project, and also to Rosatom’s procurement system, requirements to nuclear suppliers, and possibilities for participation of Armenian enterprises in Rosatom’s international projects.

Welcoming remarks were delivered by the First Deputy General Director for Corporate Development and International Business of ROSATOM K. Komarov. In his speech he stressed that the task of Rosatom as a result of the complex work to extend the NPP operation in order to significantly improve the safety of unit, which must comply with Russian, Armenian and international standards and requirements. Rosatom already has considerable experience in this field, for example, during the reconstruction of power units № 3 and №4 at Kola NPP with VVER-440 reactors of the same project as on the Armenian NPP, Rosatom increased the safety indicators about 50 times.

Within the first session, A. Galstyan, the Deputy Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Armenia defined the role of Armenian NPP for the energy security of the country, presented performances that demonstrate the high safety level of the plant, and plans to increase safety and efficiency of the NPP operation. Armenian NPP operation provides for about 35% of all the energy generated in the country, while the electricity price is one of the lowest in Armenia. The speaker pointed out that Armenian NPP while remaining fully operational after Spitak earthquake of 1988 is the only plant in the world restarted after almost a 60-year preservation. November 5th NPP will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the restart. All these years, it works safely and reliably.

E. Salkov, Director General of Rusatom Service JSC, presented the main stages of the life extension project for Armenian NPP, the project current status and possibilities for enterprises of the Republic of Armenia to take part in the project. The project implementation process consists of two stages. Stage One – comprehensive inspection of the unit equipment and structures, development of program for preparation of the unit for additional operation period. Stage Two – implementation of the said program including research and calculations, and also analytical, design, engineering, installation, and pre-commissioning activities. The work completion is scheduled for 2019. According to the results, the service life of Unit 2 of Armenian NPP will be extended for 10 years.

Within the second session, Rosatom’s representative spoke about Rosatom’s procurement system, existing requirements to procurements and suppliers, procurement control and complaint system, answered the audience’s questions related the possibilities for Armenian enterprises to participate in Rosatom’s international projects.

The session participants expressed their confidence that Armenian suppliers and subcontractors while participating in the life extension project for Armenian NPP will be able to further participate in Rosatom’s constructions and activities at other sites.