"Rosatom" has begun actively implementing the world's first project to build a land-based small nuclear power plant in the Ust-Yansky district of the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia). The first blanks for the SNPP with the latest "RITM-200N" reactor unit are already being cast by workers of the machine-building division of the state corporation in St. Petersburg.
"RITM-200N", which will be installed at the new nuclear power plant, is a unique development of Russian scientists based on reactors for nuclear icebreakers and floating nuclear power plants "RITM-200". The capacity of "RITM-200N" is at least 55 MW with the possibility of increasing it to 110 MW, the utilization rate of the installed capacity is 90%.
One fuel cycle of the unit is 5-6 years, the estimated service life of "RITM-200N" is 60 years with the possibility of extension. "RITM-200N" will need a major overhaul approximately once every twenty years.
The demand for SNPP technological solutions is growing rapidly today. Such reactors are considered one of the most promising areas for the development of global nuclear energy. In this matter, Russia intends to maintain its leadership, and confidently moves to the production of not experimental or pilot, but industrial installations. In other words, we are already doing in real metal what others are only planning.
The Yakut SNPP will provide electricity to one of Russia's largest gold deposits, "Kyuchus", a number of settlements, and the "Deputatskoye" and "Tirekhtyakh" tin deposits. More than a thousand people will be employed in the construction of the facility, and after the station is put into operation, about six hundred jobs will be created.
Thanks to this SNPP, residents of remote areas will receive uninterrupted electricity. New enterprises will also be able to open there for the development of the region, and then new jobs will appear. In addition, Yakutia will be able to reduce CO2 emissions into the atmosphere by replacing obsolete power plants with nuclear carbon-free energy.