Permanent Closure of 45 Year Old Russian Reactor Novovoronezh-3
The permanent closure of the forty-five year old unit 3 of the Novovoronezh was announced by plant operator Rosenergoatom on 25 December 2016. Work for a fifteen-year life-extension had been completed in 2002. The VVER V-179 reactor, more commonly known as VVER440 with a capacity of 417 MW, is located on the River Don, in the Voronezh Oblast in central Russia. Novovoronezh-3 was first connected to the grid on 27 December 1971. This leaves the forty-four year old unit 4, also a VVER V-179, operating at the site, together with the 1000 MW unit 5 reactor and the VVER 1200 unit 6, which began operation on 5 August 2016. Four other VVER440 remain in operation at the Kola plant in Northwest Russia. After the closure of Novovoronezh-3, Russia’s nuclear power fleet counts 35 operating reactors and six units under construction.