Verkhovsky Balakovo nuclear power plant. Balakovo NPP: construction and development. Ensuring environmental safety at BalNPP

Balakovo Nuclear Power Plant is the largest electricity producer in Russia - more than 30 billion kWh. annually, which is 1/5 of the output of all nuclear power plants in the country. Among the largest power plants of all types in the world, it ranks 51st. The first power unit of BalNPP was included in the Unified Energy System of the USSR in December 1985, the fourth unit in 1993 became the first to be put into operation in Russia after the collapse of the USSR.

1. The Balakovo NPP is located on the left bank of the Saratov reservoir of the Volga River, 10 km northeast of the city of Balakovo, Saratov region. approximately 900 km southeast of Moscow.

Technical water supply, which is extremely important for water-cooled power reactors, is carried out in a closed circuit using a cooling reservoir formed by cutting off the shallow part of the Saratov reservoir with dams.

2. At the Balakovo NPP there are 4 standard power units with a reactor installation, which includes a reactor of the VVER-1000 type (Water-Water Energy Reactor - 1000 megawatts of electrical power, vessel type on thermal neutrons with light water as a moderator and coolant) - this is the most common type of reactor plant in the world, the foreign analogue is abbreviated PWR.

3. The scale of the power units can be assessed “from a helicopter.”

Each power unit consists of turbine and reactor compartments - forming a monoblock. Uninterruptible power supply for each power unit is provided by three independent Reserve Diesel Electric Stations of the ASD-5600 type (RDES - with a capacity of 5.6 megawatts).

4. The height of the top level of the power unit dome is 67.5 meters.

The hermetic shell is a localizing safety system and is designed to prevent the release of radioactive substances during severe accidents with the rupture of large primary circuit pipelines and to retain an environment with high pressure and temperature in the accident localization zone. It has a cylindrical shape and consists of prestressed reinforced concrete with a thickness of 1.2 meters.

5. You can get into the reactor compartment of the power unit only from the sanitary unit of the special building via a transition overpass. In the sanitary block there are sanitary checkpoints for access to the zone of ionizing radiation. Here the station staff completely changes into protective clothing. After leaving the sanitary checkpoint into the Controlled Access Zone, personnel go to the radiation control panel to the dosimetrists on duty to receive individual dosimeters.

6. The internal door of the main gateway of the civil defense at +36 meters.

When the reactor plant is operating at power, the containment is closed - it is under a slight vacuum. For operational personnel to gain access inside, it is necessary to undergo a locking procedure. The main gateway is a complex device designed to provide passage into the containment volume while maintaining the pressure difference between the containment volume and the reactor compartment structure.

7. The central hall in the containment shell of the 2nd power unit.

The containment is made in the form of a cylinder with an internal diameter of 45 meters and a height of 52 m, from 13.2 m above ground level, where its flat bottom is located, to 66.35 m, where the top of its domed top is located.

8. The technological diagram of each block is double-circuit. The first circuit is radioactive, it includes a water-cooled power reactor with a thermal power of 3000 MW and four circulation cooling loops, through which coolant - water under a pressure of 16 MPa - is pumped through the core using the main circulation pumps.

9. We go down to the reactor.

The Balakovo NPP uses a modernized serial nuclear reactor VVER-1000 with pressurized water, which is designed to generate thermal energy through a chain reaction of fission of atomic nuclei. The reactor power is controlled by changing the position in the core of clusters of rods with absorbing elements, steel tubes with boron carbide, as well as by changing the concentration of boric acid in the primary circuit water.

10. Nuclear reactor.

The water temperature at the reactor inlet is 289 °C, at the outlet - 320 °C. The circulating water flow through the reactor is 84,000 t/h.
The water heated in the reactor is sent through four pipelines to the steam generators.

11. The steam generator is a horizontal heat exchanger with a submerged heat exchange surface, designed to produce dried saturated steam with a capacity of 1470 t/h. Water from the reactor enters the collector and is distributed inside through 11 thousand tubes. Passing through them, it transfers heat to the boiler water of the secondary circuit and exits through a similar collecting manifold to the suction pipe of the main circulation pump (MCP). Thus, the steam generator is the boundary element between the first - radioactive circuit and the second - non-radioactive.

12. The second circuit is non-radioactive and consists of evaporation and water supply plants, a block desalting plant and a turbine unit with an electric power of 1000 MW. The coolant of the primary circuit is cooled in steam generators, while giving off heat to the water of the secondary circuit.

Saturated steam produced in the steam generator, with a pressure of 6.4 MPa and a temperature of 280 °C, is supplied to the steam collection line and sent to the turbine unit, which drives the electric generator.

13. View inside the main circulation pump (MCP) box.

Forced circulation of the coolant is carried out due to the operation of four main circulation pumps ГЦН-195М. Each of the main circulation pumps at a rotation speed of 1000 rpm. ensures pumping of 21,000 tons of water per hour through the reactor core.

14. Nuclear fuel wet reloading pool.

To maintain normal operation of the reactor, it is necessary to refuel. Fuel reloading is carried out in parts; at the end of the reactor's boron campaign, a third of the fuel assembly is unloaded and the same number of fresh assemblies is loaded into the core; for these purposes, there is a special MPS-1000 reloading machine in the containment. Nuclear fuel for the Balakovo NPP is produced by the Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrates Plant.

All operations with spent nuclear fuel (SNF) are performed remotely under a 3-meter layer of borated water. Spent fuel assemblies contain a large amount of uranium fission products. Nuclear fuel has the property of self-heating to high temperatures and is highly radioactive, so it is stored for 3-4 years in pools with a certain temperature regime under a layer of water, protecting personnel from ionizing radiation. As the fuel ages, the radioactivity of the fuel and the power of its residual heat release decrease. Usually after 3 years, when the self-heating of the fuel assembly is reduced to 50-60 °C, it is removed and sent for storage, disposal or recycling.

15. Control panel for reloading machine MPS-1000.

One of the most effective ways to increase electricity production is to increase the duration of the nuclear reactor campaign; work in this direction has been carried out at the Balakovo NPP for many years. With improvements in nuclear fuel design, the transition to an 18-month fuel cycle has become possible and is currently being gradually implemented. The bottom line is that fuel refueling has begun to be carried out less frequently than once a year; if it is fully implemented, refueling will occur once every 1.5 years; accordingly, the reactor operates longer without stopping, and its energy output increases.

Currently, campaigns with a planned duration of 420-480 eff are being implemented at the BNPP. days, which is a crucial transition stage to the 18-month fuel cycle.

16. To measure the temperature and pressure of the coolant inside the reactor vessel, sensors are used that are placed in the neutron measuring channels on the traverse of the reactor protective tube block.

17. Flaw detectors carry out routine inspection of welded joints and base metal.

In total, the station employs about 3,770 people, more than 60% of whom have higher or secondary vocational education.

18. Impact wrench for the main connector of the VVER-1000 reactor.

The use of a wrench ensures sealing of the seal assembly by simultaneous and uniform pulling of the studs, reduces the time required to carry out work on sealing and desealing the main connector of the reactor, reduces the labor costs of maintenance personnel and, as a consequence, their dose loads.

19. For normal operation of the steam generator during its service life, it is necessary to monitor the heat transfer surface of the pipes from deposits.

20. To monitor the condition of the metal at the Balakovo NPP, the eddy current monitoring method (ECM) is used.

21. Polar crane under the containment dome.

When the primary circuit decompresses and leaks, water evaporates, which is accompanied by an increase in pressure under the dome of the containment volume. To reduce the steam pressure, cold water is sprayed into it.

22. Measuring the contamination of workwear in a sanitary lock.

In the premises of the reactor compartment, special posts for additional dosimetric control and sanitary treatment - sanitary locks - have been organized. Personnel leaving the work area or the location of technological equipment undergo mandatory radiation monitoring and, if necessary, washing and treatment of clothing and skin to prevent the spread of radioactive contamination into cleaner areas where personnel are permanently staying.

23. Block control panel.

The personnel conducts the entire technological process (controls the equipment and controls the operation of the automation) from the control panel (MCR).

24. Conventionally, the control room is divided into three areas of responsibility. The first zone is under the direct operational control of the unit shift manager and includes power supply systems and safety system panels, the second zone is under the operational control of the leading reactor control engineer - it monitors the operation of the reactor, the main equipment of the primary circuit and the technological systems of the reactor compartment. The third zone is the responsibility of the lead turbine control engineer.

25. Leading engineer for turbine control of one of the power units.

26. Over 19,000 parameters are monitored in the control room of one power unit.

27. All the steam produced by the four steam generators of the power unit is combined and supplied to the turbine.

28. Machine room with turbogenerator.

The steam turbine is condensing, single-shaft, four-cylinder (one high-pressure cylinder, three low-pressure).
Rated power 1000 MW, rotation speed 1500 rpm.

29. The high pressure cylinder (HPC) is designed to trigger the “hot” steam coming from the main steam manifold.

30. The initial pressure in the housing is 60 atmospheres, the steam temperature is 274 degrees.
A TVV-1000 generator is mounted on the same shaft with the turbine; the generated voltage is 24,000 volts.

31. Senior driver on tour at the turbine.

33. Distribution of electricity.

The electrical equipment of nuclear power plants in general differs little from the equipment of thermal power plants, with the exception of increased requirements for reliability.

34. The output of power from the Balakovo NPP is carried out through the ORU-220/500 kV buses into the unified power system of the Middle Volga.

35. These buses are nodes in the energy system and connect the Saratov energy system with the Ulyanovsk, Samara, Volgograd and Ural ones.

36. The cooling pond with an area of 24.1 km² is the source of circulating water supply for the nuclear power plant.

37. Grass carp and silver carp live here, which are necessary for natural biological purification and maintaining the water quality of the cooling pond.

38. Water from the cooler is supplied through open supply channels to four block pumping stations (BPS), located on its shore. These pumping stations provide process water to non-responsible consumers.

39. For technical water supply to critical consumers (equipment, including emergency equipment, interruption in water supply of which is not allowed in any operating modes), a special closed circulation system is used, which includes spray pools.

40. Cooling of water occurs due to spraying, which increases the heat exchange area.

41. Chemical water treatment.

The chemical water treatment panel contains control devices and controls for elements that provide water purification and desalination processes, dosing of reagents during water treatment, etc.

42. The analytical laboratory is designed to ensure high reliability when conducting chemical analysis, to process and accumulate databases on the chemical operating conditions of power units.

43. The laboratory is equipped with ion chromatographs, X-ray crystal diffraction spectrometer, moisture titrator, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer, etc.

44. The construction of the second stage of the station is being discussed, consisting of the fifth and sixth power units of the same design as those already operating at the station.

I thank the press service of the Balakovo NPP for their help in creating the report!

Taken from helio in Balakovo NPP - the most powerful nuclear power plant in Russia

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Balakovo NPP. Introduction

Balakovo NPP is the largest electricity producer in Russia. It produces more than 30 billion kWh of electricity annually (more than any other nuclear, thermal and hydroelectric power plant in the country). The Balakovo NPP provides a quarter of the electricity production in the Volga Federal District and a fifth of the output of all nuclear power plants in the country. Its electricity is reliably provided to consumers in the Volga region (76% of the electricity it supplies), the Center (13%), the Urals (8%) and Siberia (3%). Electricity from the Balakovo NPP is the cheapest among all nuclear power plants and thermal power plants in Russia. The installed capacity utilization factor (IUR) at the Balakovo NPP is more than 80 percent.

Balakovo NPP is a recognized leader in the nuclear energy industry in Russia; it has repeatedly been awarded the title “Best NPP in Russia” (based on work results in 1995, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2005 and 2006). In 2003, Balakovo NPP became the winner of the competition “Enterprise of high production culture and labor organization.” The station is also the winner of the II (2001), IV (2004), V (2005) and VI (2006) All-Russian competitions “Russian organization of high social efficiency”. Since 2002, the Balakovo nuclear power plant has the status of a branch of the Rosenergoatom concern of the Federal Agency for Atomic Energy (until March 2004, the Ministry of the Russian Federation).

The main activities of the NPP management are to ensure and improve safety during operation, protect the environment from the influence of the technological process, reduce costs in the production of electricity, improve the social security of personnel, and increase the contribution of the station to the socio-economic development of the region.

How it all began

The history of the Balakovo Nuclear Power Plant, the largest producer of electricity in Russia, goes back to the 70s, when work began in the Volga region to select a territory for a future powerful nuclear power plant, originally called Privolzhskaya. The need for the construction of nuclear power plants was dictated by the emerging shortage of electricity in the region, which was due to the intensive growth of industry.

A feasibility study for the construction of a future nuclear power plant on the instructions of the USSR Ministry of Energy was carried out by the Ural branch of the Teploelectroproekt Institute. The location of the station was studied on the territory of the unified energy system of the Middle Volga region. The site was selected taking into account such factors as the need to cover the electricity shortage in the Middle Volga region and in the center of Russia, acceptable hydrogeological and seismic conditions, and the absence of tornadoes.

By Order of the Ministry of Energy No. 6r dated January 13, 1977, signed by Deputy Minister P.P. Falaleev, a State Interdepartmental Commission was created to select a site for the construction of a nuclear power plant in the Saratov region. Deputy Head of Glavatomenergo V.N. Kondratenko was appointed its chairman. At the end of January, the commission, having reviewed the materials prepared by the Ural branch of the Teploelektroproekt Institute and having visited the site, signed an act that designated the site near the village of Natalino, Balakovo district, as the site of future construction. This act was approved on March 26, 1977 by the chairman of the executive committee of the Saratov Regional Council of Workers' Deputies N.S. Aleksandrov, and approved on May 12 of the same year by the Minister of Energy and Electrification of the USSR P.S. Neporozhny.

The choice of the construction site of the Balakovo NPP was carried out in full compliance with the legislation in force at that time, construction and sanitary norms and rules. The Chief State Sanitary Doctor of the USSR A.I. Burnazyan agreed on the location of a nuclear power plant with a capacity of 4-6 million kW in the Balakovo area, provided that the distance between the nuclear power plant and the city's building boundary was at least 8 km. This requirement was met.

The city of Balakovo itself, the second most important industrial center of the Saratov region, is located on the left bank of the Volga, on the border of the Middle and Lower Volga regions, 180 km from Saratov and 260 km from Samara. Balakov's first industrial enterprise - a special oil engine plant of the Mamin brothers (later the machine-building plant named after F.E. Dzerzhinsky, then Volgodieselmash) - was founded back in 1899. However, rapid industrial construction in Balakovo began only in the 50s of the last century. The development of the city itself is connected with this. In the 60-80s, the population of Balakovo increased by 180 thousand people (currently it exceeds 200 thousand people). Thanks to five All-Union construction projects, a large industrial complex has been created in Balakovo, numbering more than two dozen chemical, mechanical engineering, energy, industrial and housing construction enterprises. Among the largest enterprises that already existed at the time of the start of construction of the nuclear power plant, it should be noted the Saratov Hydroelectric Power Station, the production associations “Balakovskoye Khimvolokno”, “Balakovorezinotekhnika”, “Balakovo Mineral Fertilizers”, and the management of “Saratovgesstroy”.

In accordance with the instructions of the Ministry of Energy No. F-9520 dated August 1, 1977, Glavniproekt, the Teploelektroproekt Institute and its Ural branch began developing working drawings for the preparatory stage of construction of the nuclear power plant. The directorate of the Volga nuclear power plant under construction, located in the city of Balakovo, was created by order of the Ministry of Energy on October 26, 1977. D.T. Shutyuk was appointed director of the plant under construction on November 15, 1977.

The nuclear power plant under construction officially began to be called Balakovo only in the summer of 1978 - after Minister P.S. Neporozhny signed the corresponding order on June 19.

All-Union construction

If we count from the beginning of the construction of the power units themselves, then the beginning of construction of the Balakovo NPP can be dated back to 1980, while the construction of transport and engineering communications began in October 1977. The ceremonial laying of the symbolic first stone in the foundation of the future nuclear power plant took place on October 28, 1977.
The Saratovgesstroy management, headed by A.I. Maksakov, was chosen as the main contractor for the construction of the nuclear power plant. By that time it had extensive experience in the construction of large industrial facilities - the Saratov hydroelectric power station, chemical industry enterprises. A large number of specialized trusts and departments worked as subcontractors in the construction of the station - “Gidroelektromontazh”, “Volgoenergomontazh”, “Spetsgidroenergomontazh”, “Gidromontazh”, “Volgopromventilatsiya” and others. People came from all over the Soviet Union to build the Balakovo nuclear power plant, and the construction itself was declared an All-Union Komsomol project.
Equipment for the nuclear power plant was also manufactured in different regions of the Soviet Union: the reactor at the Izhora Plant PA, the turbine unit at the Kharkov Turbine Plant PA, the generator at the Elektrosila PA in Leningrad. Work related to the construction of the station was carried out by hundreds of other factories and organizations.

While the preparatory work was underway, specialists from the Ural branch of the Teploelektroproekt Institute completed the technical design of the Balakovo NPP. It was approved on October 8, 1979 by order No. 127ps of the USSR Ministry of Energy and Electrification in accordance with the protocol of the scientific and technical council and the department for the examination of projects and estimates of this ministry No. 61 dated June 14 of the same year. The order noted the excellent quality of the completed project. The power of the first stage of the station was determined at 4000 MW, the annual supply of electricity was 24810 million kW.

In the fall of 1982, V.E. Maslov was appointed director of the Balakovo NPP under construction. For seven years, Vladimir Emelyanovich headed the enterprise. Under him, the core of workers was formed that still works at the enterprise today.

During the construction of the Balakovo NPP, maximum industrialization of the installation of building structures was achieved through the use of enlarged blocks and fully prefabricated reinforced blocks. The latest technologies and mechanisms were widely used. A unique crane with a lifting capacity of 380 tons made it possible to carry out tiered installation of the protective shell of power units and install fully assembled metal structures of the domes. The use of large-block volumetric installation of structures helped to provide an in-line method for the construction of power units.

Together with the Balakovo Nuclear Power Plant, the city was built and became more beautiful. Its current appearance cannot be imagined without residential microdistricts, educational, cultural and sports institutions, built according to the title of the first stage of the Balakovo NPP. Due to this, almost a third of modern Balakovo was built.

According to the title of the first stage of the Balakovo NPP, 541.5 thousand square meters were built. meters of housing (11,481 apartments), three schools for 5,638 students, 11 kindergartens for 3,200 places, a gym, a medical unit, a clinic for 1,500 visits, shops with a total area of 4,383 sq. meters, catering establishments with 741 seats, four pharmacies, a children's health camp "Lazurny", a fire station and much more. Subsequently, after the commissioning of four power units of the first stage, with the help of the nuclear power plant in Balakovo, a railway station for 600 passengers, a therapeutic building for a city hospital for 300 beds, a laundry, a water stadium, a pumping station, a water purification station and a number of other facilities were erected, and in the Balakovo district - three schools for 818 students.

The blocks come into operation

The physical start-up of the reactor of power unit No. 1 of the Balakovo NPP took place on December 12, 1985, and it produced the first industrial current on December 24. The act of acceptance of the completed construction of the launch complex of the first power unit of the station was signed by the State Acceptance Commission on December 28, and the next day it was approved by the Minister of Energy and Electrification of the USSR A.I. Mayorets. By decision of the State Commission, the quality of construction of the facility was assessed as “excellent”.

Power unit No. 1 was followed by power units No. 2 and 3, the power starts of which took place in October 1987 and December 1988. If in 1986 the electricity generation at the Balakovo NPP amounted to just over 5 billion kWh (installed capacity utilization factor - 57.1 percent), then in 1989 it reached almost 19 billion kWh (capacity utilization factor - 72.3 percent).

Construction of the start-up complex for power unit No. 4 of the Balakovo NPP began in 1983. This unit was accepted into trial operation on May 12, 1993 (the final act on its acceptance into commercial operation was signed on December 22 of the same year). Like power units No. 1-3, power unit No. 4 is equipped with a VVER-1000 nuclear reactor and has an installed electrical capacity of 1000 megawatts. Power unit No. 4 was the first to be put into operation in the Russian Federation after it gained state independence.

Since 2000, the station has generated more than 28 billion kWh of electricity per year, which is one fifth of the output of all nuclear power plants of the Rosenergoatom concern.

The installed capacity utilization factor of the Balakovo NPP currently exceeds 80 percent. Most of the main indicators that determine the safety and reliability of power units at the Balakovo NPP are better or are at the level of the world average for similar nuclear power plants with pressurized water reactors.
A special role in the development of the Balakovo NPP was played by the governor of the Saratov region P.L. Ipatov, who from June 1989 to April 2005 worked as the director of the station (in 1985-1989 he was its chief engineer). It was under his leadership that the Balakovo NPP became one of the best in Russia, the largest electricity producer in the country.

In April 2005, V.I. Ignatov, who had previously (since 1990) worked as its chief engineer, was appointed Deputy General Director of the Rosenergoatom Concern - Director of the Balakovo NPP. He made a great personal contribution to ensuring the safe, reliable and efficient operation of nuclear power plants, and the implementation of programs for their modernization and reconstruction.

The second stage of the Balakovo NPP includes two power units (Nos. 5 and 6) with an installed electrical capacity of 1000 MW each.

Construction of the second stage was suspended in accordance with Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation No. 1026 of December 28, 1992.

On January 28, 2005, the Federal Atomic Energy Agency issued an order “On organizing work to complete the construction of power unit No. 5 of the Balakovo NPP and adjusting the federal target program “Energy Efficient Economy.” This order determined the commissioning date for power unit No. 5 of the Balakovo NPP in 2010.

Consideration of the issue of resuming construction of the second stage of the Balakovo NPP cannot fail to take into account the opinion of the general public. On June 8, 2005, public hearings were held in Balakovo on the materials of the environmental impact assessment of the planned activities for the construction and commissioning of the second stage of the Balakovo NPP, including power units No. 5 and No. 6. The vast majority of representatives of public and socio-political organizations operating in the city who took part in these hearings expressed support for plans to resume construction and commission the second stage of the station.

Order No. 899 of November 30, 2005 of the Federal Service for Environmental, Technological and Nuclear Supervision approved the positive conclusion of the expert commission of the state environmental assessment of the project for the construction of the fifth and sixth power units of the Balakovo NPP.

The relevance of increasing the capacity of the Balakovo NPP is determined by forecasts made on the basis of an analysis of the real state of the integrated energy system of the Middle Volga and a forecast of energy consumption in the region, and is fully consistent with the strategic course for the development of nuclear energy, determined by the country's leadership.

413866, Sarov region, Balakovo district, Balakovo

7 (845-3) 32-17-77, 32-11-66 (request)

7 (845-3) 33-26-38

The Balakovo NPP is located 8 km from the city of Balakovo, Saratov region, on the left bank of the Saratov reservoir. It is a branch of OJSC Rosenergoatom Concern.

Balakovo NPP is the largest electricity producer in Russia. It produces more than 30 billion kW annually. hour of electricity (more than any other nuclear, thermal and hydroelectric power plant in the country). It provides a quarter of the electricity production in the Volga Federal District and a fifth of the output of all nuclear power plants in the country. Its electricity is reliably provided to consumers in the Volga region (76% of the electricity it supplies), the Center (13%), the Urals (8%) and Siberia (3%). The installed capacity utilization factor (IUR) at the Balakovo NPP is about 90 percent (in 2009 - 89.32%).

The units were launched:

first - December 28, 1985,
second - October 10, 1987,
third - December 28, 1988,
fourth - May 12, 1993

The fourth power unit of the Balakovo NPP became the first Russian power unit put into operation after the collapse of the USSR.

The station employs about 4,000 people, more than 60% of whom have higher and secondary vocational education.

Balakovo NPP, a recognized leader of the Russian nuclear energy industry, has repeatedly received honorary titles and awards:

“Best NPP in Russia” based on the results of work in 1995, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009;
laureate of the XIV International Competition “Gold Medal “European Quality” in 2008;
winner of the All-Russian competitions “Russian organization of high social efficiency” in 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007;
the best station in the field of safety culture based on the results of the Rosenergoatom concern in the field of compliance with the principles of safety culture - 2006, 2007 and 2009;
honorary title “Leader of Environmental Activities in Russia” based on the results of 2007, 2008, 2009.

Balakovo Nuclear Power Plant is one of the largest nuclear power plants in Russia. It is located on the left bank of the Saratov reservoir of the Volga River at a distance of 900 km southeast of Moscow. The first stage of the nuclear power plant includes four unified power units with a total installed electrical capacity of 4000 MW. They were built according to the most modern designs - water-cooled water reactors of the VVER type, and these are the ones installed at the station and operate reliably all over the world.

The launch of the first power unit took place on December 28, 1985, in 1987 the second power unit produced its first kilowatt-hours of electricity in 1988 - the third, the fourth came into operation in 1993. Balakovo NPP is a state-owned enterprise, part of the Rosenergoatom concern of the Russian Ministry of Atomic Energy, it operates reliably and stably, improving all key indicators every year. The company produces the cheapest electricity among nuclear and thermal power plants in the Russian Federation. In 2000, the nuclear power plant generated more than 27.5 billion kWh. electricity - the highest figure in the country among energy producers. Ten regions and autonomous republics of Russia are connected to it by power lines. It provides reliable and stable power supply to consumers in the Volga region, Center, Urals and Siberia.

Key indicators of NPP operational reliability, defined by national and international standards and regulations, are consistently at a high level. The Balakovo NPP is one of the ten “cleanest” nuclear power plants in the world in terms of radiation. The quality system created at the enterprise in recent years is an effective means of ensuring the required level of safety and reliability of nuclear power plants with high economic indicators.

Based on the results of 1999 and 2000, Balakovo NPP was recognized as the “Best station in Russia”. The station has received such a high title before.

Among the large enterprises of the Saratov region, the Balakovo nuclear power plant is one of the most environmentally friendly. At the nuclear power plant and in the area where it is located, constant monitoring is carried out to monitor the impact of the technological process on the environment. It is carried out by state supervision authorities and the radiation safety department of the Balakovo NPP. The surveillance zone covers an area with a radius of 30 km. Data from long-term measurements allow us to conclude that the operation of nuclear power plants does not have a negative impact on the environment. Uncontrolled impact on the environment of harmful substances generated as a result of the production process is excluded by the design and the high level of operation achieved. The radiation situation in the city of Balakovo and in the area where the nuclear power plant is located is characterized by values from 8 to 15 microroentgen/hour, which corresponds to the level of natural background values characteristic of the European part of the country, and to the level that was there before the construction of the station.

To improve the safety and quality of operation at the Balakovo NPP, international experience is widely used. The station takes an active part in WANO programs and cooperates with foreign nuclear power plants and companies. For more than 10 years, bilateral partnerships with Biblis NPP (Germany) and Paluel NPP (France), aimed at solving specific production problems, have been successfully and dynamically developing.

The current appearance of Balakovo - a modern and beautiful city - cannot be imagined without residential neighborhoods, educational, cultural and sports institutions built under the title of nuclear power plant.

The Balakovo NPP operates 4 power units with water-water reactors VVER-1000 with a capacity of 1000 MW each.

1. The Balakovo NPP is located on the left bank of the Saratov reservoir of the Volga River, 10 km northeast of the city of Balakovo, Saratov region. approximately 900 km southeast of Moscow.

2. At the Balakovo NPP there are 4 standard power units with a reactor installation, which includes a reactor of the VVER-1000 type (Water-Water Energy Reactor - 1000 megawatts of electrical power, vessel-type thermal neutrons with light water as a moderator and coolant) - this is the most common type of reactor plant in the world, the foreign analogue is abbreviated PWR.

3. The scale of the power units can be assessed “from a helicopter.”

Each power unit consists of a turbine and reactor compartment - forming a monoblock. Uninterruptible power supply for each power unit is provided by three independent Reserve Diesel Electric Stations of the ASD-5600 type (RDES - with a capacity of 5.6 megawatts).

4. The height of the upper level of the power unit dome is 67.5 meters.

6. The internal door of the main gateway of the civil defense at +36 meters.

When the reactor installation is operating at power, the containment is closed - it is under a slight vacuum. For operational personnel to gain access inside, it is necessary to undergo a locking procedure. The main gateway is a complex device designed to provide passage into the containment volume while maintaining the pressure difference between the containment volume and the reactor compartment structure.

7. The central hall in the containment shell of the 2nd power unit.

9. We go down to the reactor.

10. Nuclear reactor.

13. View inside the main circulation pump (MCP) box.

14. Nuclear fuel wet reloading pool.

15. Control panel for reloading machine MPS-1000.

Currently, campaigns with a planned duration of 420-480 eff are being implemented at the BNPP. days, which is a crucial transition stage to the 18-month fuel cycle.

17. Flaw detectors carry out routine inspection of welded joints and base metal.

In total, the station employs about 3,770 people, more than 60% of whom have higher or secondary vocational education.

18. Impact wrench for the main connector of the VVER-1000 reactor.

19. For normal operation of the steam generator during its service life, it is necessary to monitor the heat transfer surface of the pipes from deposits.

20. To monitor the condition of the metal at the Balakovo NPP, the eddy current monitoring method (ECM) is used.

21. Polar crane under the containment dome.

22. Measuring the contamination of workwear in a sanitary lock.

23. Block control panel.

The personnel conducts the entire technological process (controls the equipment and controls the operation of the automation) from the control panel (MCR).

25. Leading engineer for turbine control of one of the power units.

26. Over 19,000 parameters are monitored in the control room of one power unit.

27. All the steam produced by the four steam generators of the power unit is combined and supplied to the turbine.

28. Machine room with turbogenerator.

Steam turbine is condensing, single-shaft, four-cylinder (one high-pressure cylinder, three low-pressure).
Rated power 1000 MW, rotation speed 1500 rpm.

29. The high pressure cylinder (HPC) is designed to trigger the “hot” steam coming from the main steam manifold.

31. Senior driver on tour at the turbine.

33. Distribution of electricity.

The electrical equipment of nuclear power plants in general differs little from the equipment of thermal power plants, with the exception of increased requirements for reliability.

34. The output of power from the Balakovo NPP is carried out through the ORU-220/500 kV buses into the unified power system of the Middle Volga.

35. These buses are nodes in the energy system and connect the Saratov energy system with the Ulyanovsk, Samara, Volgograd and Ural ones.

36. The cooling pond with an area of 24.1 km² is the source of circulating water supply for the nuclear power plant.

37. This is where grass carp and silver carp live, which are necessary for natural biological purification and maintaining the water quality of the cooling pond.

40. Cooling of water occurs due to spraying, which increases the heat exchange area.

41. Chemical water treatment.

The chemical water treatment panel contains control devices and controls for elements that provide water purification and desalination processes, dosing of reagents during water treatment, etc.

42. The analytical laboratory is designed to ensure high reliability when conducting chemical analysis, to process and accumulate databases on the chemical operating conditions of power units.

43. The laboratory is equipped with ion chromatographs, X-ray crystal diffraction spectrometer, moisture titrator, inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer, etc.

44. The construction of the second stage of the station is being discussed, consisting of the fifth and sixth power units of the same design as those already operating at the station.

45.

I thank the press service of the Balakovo NPP for their help in creating the report!

For any questions regarding the use of photographs, please email.