Slovakia has five operational nuclear reactors, with a combined net power capacity of 2,308 MWe, with a sixth coming on line shortly.
In 2018, nuclear power produced approximately 55% of the country’s electricity. [1] With the additional two reactors starting in 2023, Slovakia is now in a position to be a net exporter of nuclear electricity. [2]
Two V-213 reactors, designed by Atomenergoproekt and built by Skoda at the Bohunice V2 plant. The V2 units construction began in 1976 and commenced operation in 1984 and 1985 and each provide 466 MWe. [3]
In 1982 construction on two units of the planned four-unit Mochovce nuclear power plant was commenced by Skoda, using VVER-440 V-213 reactor units, they were commissioned between 1998 and 1999. Originally 405 MWe, they were upgraded in 2008 to 438 MWe. [3]
The government of Slovakia has been committed to nuclear power, and two new reactors began construction at Mochovce in 1987, [1] but were suspended in 1992. The project reactivated in 2009.
The two new reactors at Mochovce have a net electrical capacity of 440 MW each. [1] Enel, an Italian power company and a majority shareholder of the Slovak power company, initially planned an investment of €1.6 billion for the completion of the Mochovce Nuclear Power Plant units 3 and 4 by 2011–2012. In January 2006 the Slovak government approved a new energy strategy incorporating these plans, with capacity uprates at Mochovce NPP units 1 and 2, and at Bohunice Nuclear Power Plant units 3 and 4. [4]
Mochovce-3 came on-line in January 2023. [3] Mochovce-4 is due to follow within a year.
In August 2023 Slovakia signed an agreement to receive nuclear fuel from the American company Westinghouse as a step towards moving away from Russian source fuels. [5] Slovakia is also talking to France's Framatome to work together on the development of a nuclear fuel for VVER-440 pressurised water reactors.
A proposal was put forward in February 2023 for permission to build unit 5 at Bohunice. [3]
In July 2023 an agreement with Westinghouse was signed on the potential deployment of its AP1000 and AP300 small modular reactors in Slovakia.. [3]
Three reactors have been deactivated.
Prior to its accession to the European Union, Slovakia had to shut down two of its older reactors at Bohunice, because they did not meet European safety standards. [6] Although Slovakia spent significant effort to achieve WANO standards, the EU insisted on the shutdowns. [7] The first plant closed 31 December 2006 and the second on 31 December 2008. The closure of these units, prior to the completion of two new reactors has left the country short on power and Slovakia became an energy importer after the first plant was shut down. Within the EU, Slovakia is one of the pro-nuclear Visegrád Group nations. [8] [9]
At Bohunice, two reactors of the V1 plant have been deactivated. The total cost of decommission and dismantling of Bohunice V1 by 2025 is estimated at €1.14 billion. [10]
The first reactor pressure vessel was removed from Bohunice V1 on June 3, 2020. [11] It is the first decommissioning of a VVER 440 plant to be completed. [12] The process was completed amid health and safety regulations in place to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. [12]
Radioactive waste in Slovakia is disposed without reprocessing. The spent fuel stays at the reactor site; however, some spent fuel has been exported to Russia. Slovakia has also begun a search for a high-level waste repository and established a fund with approximately €775 million to build it.[ citation needed ]
The Jaslovské Bohunice Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) is a complex of nuclear reactors situated 2.5 km from the village of Jaslovské Bohunice in the Trnava District in western Slovakia.
Rosatom, also known as Rosatom State Nuclear Energy Corporation, the State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom, or Rosatom State Corporation, is a Russian state corporation headquartered in Moscow that specializes in nuclear energy, nuclear non-energy goods and high-tech products. Established in 2007, the nonprofit organization comprises more than 350 enterprises, including scientific research organizations, a nuclear weapons complex, and the world's only nuclear icebreaker fleet.
The Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant in Bulgaria situated 180 kilometres (110 mi) north of Sofia and 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) east of Kozloduy, a town on the Danube river, near the border with Romania. It is the country's only nuclear power plant and the largest in the region. The construction of the first reactor began on 6 April 1970.
The water-water energetic reactor (WWER), or VVER is a series of pressurized water reactor designs originally developed in the Soviet Union, and now Russia, by OKB Gidropress. The idea of such a reactor was proposed at the Kurchatov Institute by Savely Moiseevich Feinberg. VVER were originally developed before the 1970s, and have been continually updated. As a result, the name VVER is associated with a wide variety of reactor designs spanning from generation I reactors to modern generation III+ reactor designs. Power output ranges from 70 to 1300 MWe, with designs of up to 1700 MWe in development. The first prototype VVER-210 was built at the Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant.
As of 2023, Finland has five operating nuclear reactors in two power plants, all located on the shores of the Baltic Sea. Nuclear power provided about 34% of the country's electricity generation in 2020. The first research nuclear reactor in Finland was commissioned in 1962 and the first commercial reactor started operation in 1977. The fifth reactor started operation in April 2023.
Nuclear decommissioning is the process leading to the irreversible complete or partial closure of a nuclear facility, usually a nuclear reactor, with the ultimate aim at termination of the operating licence. The process usually runs according to a decommissioning plan, including the whole or partial dismantling and decontamination of the facility, ideally resulting in restoration of the environment up to greenfield status. The decommissioning plan is fulfilled when the approved end state of the facility has been reached.
The Dukovany Nuclear Power Station is a nuclear power plant near Dukovany in the Czech Republic.
State Enterprise National Nuclear Energy Generating Company "Energoatom", commonly known as just Energoatom, is a state enterprise operating all four nuclear power plants in Ukraine. It is the largest power producer in Ukraine.
The Armenian Nuclear Power Plant (ANPP), also known as the Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant, is the only nuclear power plant in the South Caucasus, located 36 kilometers west of Yerevan in Armenia.
The Mochovce Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant located between the towns of Nitra and Levice, on the site of the former village of Mochovce, Slovakia. Two up-rated 470 MW reactors are presently in operation, with two further reactors of the same type under construction. Generating almost 7,000 GWh of electricity a year, the power plant currently serves approximately 20% of Slovakia's electricity needs.
The Czech Republic operates two nuclear power plants: Temelín and Dukovany. As of 2019 the government intends to increase the share of nuclear electricity production from 30 % to 58 %. To this end, a new reactor is to be constructed at the Dukovany site, which will replace older units by 2035. New capacities are also expected to be added at the Temelín site.
KS 150 is a Gas Cooled Reactor using Heavy Water as a moderator (GCHWR) nuclear reactor design. A single example, A-1, was constructed at the Bohunice Nuclear Power Plant in Jaslovské Bohunice, Czechoslovakia. The power plant suffered a series of accidents, the worst being an accident on February 22, 1977, rated INES-4. Since 1979 the plant has been undergoing decommissioning.
The Loviisa Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) is located close to the Finnish town of Loviisa. It houses two Soviet-designed VVER-440 pressurised water reactors, with capacities of 507 MW each. It is one of Finland's two operating nuclear power plants, the other being the three-unit Olkiluoto Nuclear Power Plant.
Tianwan Nuclear Power Plant is a nuclear power plant (NPP) in the city of Lianyungang in Jiangsu Province, China. It is located on the coast of the Yellow Sea approximately 30 kilometers east of downtown Lianyungang. It is owned by Jiangsu Nuclear Power Corporation, a joint venture mainly owned by the China National Nuclear Power Co., Ltd (CNNP),subsidiary of China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC).
Greifswald nuclear power station, also known as Lubmin nuclear power station, was the largest nuclear power station in East Germany before closure shortly after the German reunification. The plants were of the VVER-440/V-230 type, which was the second generation of Soviet-designed plants. The plant is in Lubmin near Greifswald, in the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.
Rheinsberg Nuclear Power Station was the second nuclear reactor in East Germany after the Rossendorf Research Reactor, and the first nuclear power reactor in East Germany. It was built close to the city of Rheinsberg on the Stechlinsee. The power station was one of the first generation of demonstration power reactors. Following the shutdown of Rheinsberg nuclear power plant, power generation in Germany is primarily dependent on natural gas, coal and other fossil fuels, predominantly sourced from Russia.
Nuclear power in the European Union accounted for approximately 26% of total electricity production in 2019 and nearly half of low-carbon energy production across the EU.
In Hungary, nuclear energy plays a decisive role in the national energy mix, While in 2006, only 38 percent of the country's electricity came from nuclear fission, by 2014 that proportion had risen to over 53 percent. It is predicted that rate of around 50 percent will be permanent in the near future.
Currently, Turkey has no operating commercial nuclear reactors. However, four VVER-1200 reactors at the Akkuyu Nuclear Power Plant, are currently under construction and expected to come online in 2023. The nuclear power debate has a long history, with the 2018 construction start in Mersin Province being the sixth major attempt to build a nuclear power plant since 1960. Nuclear power has been criticised as very expensive to taxpayers.
Primary energy use in Slovakia was 194 TWh and 36 TWh per million inhabitants in 2009.
