Electricity generated by Russia’s nuclear power plants hit a record high in 2019 by reaching about 208.8 billion kilowatt-hours, up from some 204.3 billion in 2018, nuclear energy company Rosenergoatom said Wednesday, according to EA Daily.
The top three generators were the Rostov, Kalinin and Balakovo nuclear power plants, Rosenergoatom, which operates all the NPPs in Russia, said in a press release.
At present, the share of nuclear generation is about 19 percent of the total electricity generation in Russia, and this ratio in the European part of the country has reached 40 percent, it said.
News agency RIA Novosti reported that 36 industrial power units with a total installed capacity of 30.25 gigawatts are in operation at 10 nuclear power plants in the country.
Rosenergoatom was established in 2007. The company, which carries out all of Russia’s military and civilian nuclear activities, can be seen as the successor of the Russian Ministry of Atomic Energy, founded in 1992, and previously the Ministry of Nuclear Energy and Industry of the Soviet Union.
In the second half of 2019, Rosenergoatom was authorized to use the Academic Lomonosov nuclear facility for 10 years, and the company was granted permission to operate the world’s first and only floating nuclear power station. It is planned for the Academic Lomonosov to produce electricity for Russia’s remote areas, including the Arctic region of Chukotka.
The floating plant, who set out on August 23, reached Pevek on 14 September, completing his 5000-kilometer arctic journey. The company, which defied criticism from environmental organizations, started generating power at the floating nuclear power plant recently. It was reported by some media organizations that the plant, which cost approximately 450 million dollars, will be involved in commercial operations as of 2020.