On March 22, 2021, VVER-1200 reactor-enabled Unit 6 was commissioned at the Leningrad NPP. Andrey Petrov, Director General of Rosenergoatom (Rosatom company in charge of Russian NPPs operations), signed the corresponding order. 

Pilot operation with 15-day comprehensive tests preceded the unit’s commissioning. On March 10, following the tests, Russian nuclear watchdog Rostechnadzor confirmed the facility compliance with the design documentation, technical regulations, and energy efficiency requirements.

“The Leningrad NPP’s new unit is the fourth unit with a VVER-1200 reactor commissioned in Russia. Today’s milestone event brings the total number of NPP units in Russia to 38,” Andrey Petrov noted. “The new unit will fully replace the capacity of Unit 2 with RBMK-1000, which was finally shut down in November 2020 after 45 years of operation. It will also ensure the energy and economic stability of the region.”

Today, the Leningrad NPP covers more than 55% of energy needs of St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region, which constitutes 30% of the electricity generation in the North-West of Russia. Despite the decommissioning of Unit 2, the Leningrad NPP with an installed capacity of 4,400 MW remains the most powerful nuclear power plant in Russia and the largest power plant in the North-West of Russia. Its VVER-1200 reactor-enabled units serve as references for a number of Rosatom’s international NPP projects: Hanhikivi-1 NPP in Finland, Paks-2 NPP in Hungary, the Belarusian NPP.

Vladimir Pereguda, Director of the Leningrad NPP: “The coordinated and efficient work of all participants of this large-scale project made it possible for the unit to enter commercial operation. The new unit is safe and reliable. Hundreds of tests conducted during its pilot operation have confirmed the unit’s readiness fordesign operation while providing rapidly developing North-West region of Russia with electricity and heat.”

By the start of its commercial operation, Leningrad NPP Unit 6 had already generated about 2 billion kWh of electricity. According to preliminary estimates, after the beginning of commercial operation, the economic effect in the form of additional taxes to the consolidated budget of the Leningrad Region will amount to more than 3 billion rubles (nearly 40,5 million dollars) annually.

Up-to-date information on the radiation environment near Russian NPPs and other nuclear facilities is available on www.russianatom.ru.

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