On 19 September, 2018 at Balakovo NPP (Balakovo, Saratov Oblast, a branch of Rosenergoatom JSC, a part of Rosatom’s Electric Energy Division) the first stage of the most large-scale complex emergency response exercise (CERE) has started.

The training event includes more than 1,000 people – NPP’s personnel, specialists of the Nuclear power plant emergency response team (NPPER), the Crisis centre of Rosenergoatom JSC (Moscow), forces of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation, representatives of the Ministry of Emergency Response, FGUP Emergency Response Centre of Minatom of Russia (St. Petersburg), administration of Balakovo Municipality. More than 100 units of specialized equipment are used.

Also, the exercise is watched by the foreign observers from five countries – Belarus, Armenia, South Korea, France, and Sweden.

Commenting on this event, the Plant Manager of Balakovo NPP Valeriy Bessonov noted, “We’ve been preparing for this for a long period of time. According to the plan of the exercise, we are dealing with the technology related situation that is worked out at several power units simultaneously. Continuously we cooperate with analytic groups and emergency centres. Despite the fact that the initial emergency situation according to the CERE plan goes beyond the project situation, the first day of the exercise has made it clear that with the support of Rosenergoatom JSC and Rosatom, we have enough forces and means to handle any emergency.”

During the first day of the exercise the cooperation between Balakovo NPP personnel and authorities, media offices of Balakovo Municipality administration, the Central Office of the Ministry of Emergency Response in Saratov Oblast, the Civil defense and emergency authority of Balakovo Municipality in the conditions impossible for this area – magnitude 6 earthquake - was worked out.

According to the head of the exercise, the Deputy Director General – Director on Production and Operation of NPP of Rosenergoatom JSC Andrey Dementiev, the scenarios of such exercise become more and more difficult each year.

“The main peculiarity of the modern emergency response exercise is that we use more and more difficult scenarios. This time we work out the impossible combination of many unfavorable events – natural disasters and system failure of several power units at the same time”, Andrey Dementiev noted, reviewing the results of the first day of the CERE. “Tomorrow, we will bring up the new input data that will make the situation more difficult and will require active and coordinated actions of all the participants of the exercise.”

The power units of the NPP are operated as normal during the exercise. There will be no interference in their operation in the course of the exercise.