Rosatom begins power start-up at unit no. 7 of Tianwan NPP in China

MOSCOW. Oct 8 (Interfax) - Rosatom has begun the power start-up at unit no. 7 of the Tianwan NPP in China; the facility has delivered the first kilowatts to the country's energy system, and all systems operated in the standard design mode, the Russian company said.

The power start-up stage includes a set of measures for the gradual raising of the reactor's power in several steps from 1% at the physical start-up to 50%, ensuring readiness for pilot-industrial operation. This is followed by a lengthy stage of gradual power build-up to the nominal level, after which its commercial operation and two-year warranty operation begin, Rosatom said when describing the start-up process.

Rosatom and China's CNNC signed a framework contract in 2018 for the construction of units no. 7-8 of the Tianwan NPP based on VVER-1200 reactors. Work on building the units began in 2021.

"This is the first of four units," Rosatom CEO Alexei Likhachev said in spring 2026 regarding expectations for the physical start-up at unit no. 7 (which took place in August). Rosatom is also planning the commissioning of unit No. 8 at the Tianwan NPP and units no. 3 and no. 4 at the Xudabao NPP in China over the next year and a half, he said.