Ukraine's Energoatom receives land plots for Chigirin NPP construction

MOSCOW. Aug 28 (Interfax) - Members of the Chigirin city council have given the green light to draw up a land management plan aimed at allocating land plots for permanent use by Ukraine's state nuclear operator Energoatom, Ukrainian media outlets said, citing Energoatom's social media statement.

The idea is to transfer land plots totaling 38.1493 hectares in the Cherkassy region's Orbita village to Energoatom to build four AP1000 nuclear reactors.

"Energoatom intends to breathe new life into Orbita, transforming it into one of the most modern towns like Netishin, Yuzhnoukrainsk and Varash. The successful implementation of these plans will definitely be a significant investment in the restoration and support of the state's energy security," Energoatom CEO Pyotr Kotin said.

As previously reported, a site for building a power plant in this district of the Cherkassy region was prepared back in the 1960s. It was decided in the mid-1980s that a nuclear power plant would be built there, but the project was never put into practice.

In accordance with Ukraine's Energy Strategy up to 2050, Energoatom plans to build VVER-1000 reactors no. 3 and no. 4 and AP1000 reactors no. 5 and no. 6 at the Khmelnitsky NPP.

Energoatom and Westinghouse signed a memorandum in September 2021 on the construction of five nuclear reactors in Ukraine. At the beginning of June 2022, the companies signed agreements to increase the number of reactors to be built using AP1000 technology in Ukraine from five to nine units, and to establish a Westinghouse engineering and technology center in the country.

In July 2022, Energoatom and Westinghouse signed a contract to draft an updated feasibility study for the construction of two AP1000 units at Khmelnytsky NPP in Ukraine. In December 2023, they signed a contract on procuring reactor equipment for Ukraine's first AP100 nuclear power unit.