In the reactor building of power unit No. 2 of the Kursk NPP-2 under construction, at an elevation of +14.5 meters, all four steam generators were installed in the design position. The steam generators were installed through the opening for the transport lock. The transport scheme for installing the equipment included lifting it by a crawler crane onto a transport portal, then loading it onto a specialized transport trolley and delivering it to the central hall of the reactor building at an elevation of +26.3 meters along the rail track. After this, using a polar crane, all steam generators were installed in their regular place.

The Kursk NPP-2 construction project uses an improved arrangement of steam generators: they are located parallel to each other. This makes it possible to place steam generators of greater length, significantly simplify the design of the hermetic volume where the reactor plant is located, and also reduce the volume of concrete, thereby reducing construction time by approximately 20%.

“Steam generators belong to the main equipment of the primary circuit of a nuclear power plant and are a heat exchange apparatus for producing steam supplied to a turbogenerator to convert thermal energy into electrical energy. Compared to the steam generators used with the PWR-1000 and PWR-1200 reactors, the body length of the PWR-TOI steam generators has been increased by one meter and is 15 meters, the weight is 355 tons, which has increased their power. Steam production has been increased by 50 tons per hour,” explained Andrey Osharin, first deputy director for the construction of new units of the Kursk NPP.

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The Kursk NPP-2 is currently the only nuclear power plant construction site in the Russian Federation that is in the active phase of construction.

The construction of power units No. 1 and No. 2 of the replacement station Kursk NPP-2 is carried out within the framework of the Federal project “Design and construction of reference power units of nuclear power plants” of the Comprehensive program “Development of equipment, technologies and scientific research in the sphere of use of atomic energy in the Russian Federation for the period until 2024.

The Russian nuclear industry has transformed from a piece manufacturer into a conveyor of nuclear technologies, a “reactor factory,” which allows Russia to occupy a leading position in the world in the export of nuclear technologies. Today, the share of power generated by nuclear power plants in Russia’s energy balance is about 20%, and by 2045 it should reach 25%. This instruction was given to the State Corporation Rosatom by the President of Russia.

The fuel and energy complex has been and remains one of the most important components of the Russian economy, influencing the development of other industries. The President and Government of the Russian Federation set goals for its development in order to strengthen the country’s production and technological potential and improve the quality of life of Russian citizens. Rosatom and its enterprises take an active part in this work.