Armenian nuclear power plant halted for major repairs

YEREVAN, September 19. / ARKA /. Armenia’s nuclear power plant in Metamora was brought to a halt on September 15 for a partial refueling and major repairs, the ministry of energy and natural resources said in a statement posted on its official website. 

It said the plant will resume operation on December 11. Major repairs are conducted every four years. Annually the plant uses about 90 cassettes with nuclear fuel, supplied by Russian corporation TVEL.

The plant is located some 30 kilometers west of Yerevan. It was built in the 1970s but was closed following a devastating earthquake in 1988. One of its two VVER 440-V230 light-water reactors was reactivated in 1995. Armenian authorities said they would build a new nuclear power plant to replace the aging Metsamor plant. The new plant is supposed to operate at twice the capacity of the Soviet-constructed facility. Metsamor currently generates some 40 percent of Armenia's electricity.  -0-