Work to complete the Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plant should begin this year

Ukraine wants to begin construction of four new nuclear reactors this year, Reuters reported. The work is to take place at the Khmelnytskyi nuclear power plant, located in the region of the same name in western Ukraine. Ukraine’s Energy Minister German Galushchenko specified that work would begin in the second half of this year, with the aim of offsetting capacity lost as a result of the ongoing war with Russia. Completing the plant has long been a Ukrainian priority, and its recent history also has a Czech connection.

According to the minister, the plan involves two Russian-designed VVER-1000 reactors and two AP1000 models designed by US company Westinghouse. Bulgaria is expected to help Ukraine acquire the first two reactors, which it plans to buy from the country. As for Westinghouse, US-Ukrainian cooperation dates back to 2021, and an agreement to purchase new reactors was signed in December last year.

The nuclear power plant in Khmelnytskyi Oblast was commissioned in 1987, while the second unit entered service in 2004, or more precisely, 2005. Both reactors are VVER-1000 units, with a combined capacity of 2000 MW. Interestingly, work on units three and four began around the same time as on the first two, but they have yet to be completed. According to WNN, construction work stopped in 1990, when the units were 75 and 28 percent complete.

The plant came close to completion in 2010, when an intergovernmental agreement with Russia to resume work was signed. Ukraine’s national electricity producer Energoatom was promised financial backing from Russia’s Sberbank, and the Ukrainian parliament ratified the agreement. However, before the work could begin, Russia annexed Crimea, and in 2015 then Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko terminated the agreement.

Regarding the Czech connection mentioned in the introduction, it is worth noting that Plzeň-based ŠKODA JS is also active in Ukraine. The company was naturally interested in completing the Khmelnytskyi plant, and “courtship” began as early as 2014. However, Ukraine’s shift from the Russians to the Czechs also failed to reach a clear conclusion. Intensive talks were also held around 2020, but with little success.

Whether the completion work will actually begin and the project will finally move forward remains uncertain. Given the ongoing war, it cannot be said with certainty that conditions are safe and stable. After all, the plant was rocked by several explosions last year. Ukraine’s ambitious plan is therefore likely to face a tough test.