Armenia Negotiating Construction Of New NPP With Russia, US - Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan

Muhammad Irfan Published May 24, 2023 | 09:48 PM

Armenia is negotiating the construction of a new nuclear power plant with Russia, and the United States to replace its Metsamor NPP after it expires, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Wednesday

YEREVAN (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 24th May, 2023) Armenia is negotiating the construction of a new nuclear power plant with Russia, and the United States to replace its Metsamor NPP after it expires, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Wednesday.

"Our program has plans to develop nuclear capacities. Our existing NPP has a deadline, after which we will not be able to use it. And now we are actively negotiating with several partners to build a new NPP. These negotiations are being held with Russia, the US and third countries," Pashinyan told the parliament.

He added that Armenia was considering the most economically viable options and will soon send a delegation to the US to familiarize itself with the capabilities of modular reactors, which allow for the stage-by-stage construction of small power modules.

"Other proposals involve building a 1,000-megawatt NPP at once.

This is problematic. There are also questions regarding modular reactors. Our energy specialists are analyzing everything," the prime minister said.

Armenia now has a two-unit NPP near the town of Metsamor, 19 miles south of Yerevan. The first unit was commissioned in 1976 and the second in 1980. The NPP was shut down in 1989 after the deadly Spitak earthquake. The second unit was reactivated in 1995 due to the energy crisis in the country. The plant was modernized in 2021 with the help of the Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom and is now due to expire in 2026.

The Armenian government's program provides for the extension of the operating life of the Metsamor NPP's functional unit until 2036, as well as the gradual commissioning of new units. This includes the possibility of building a medium-capacity unit or low-capacity units.