Armenia does not need particularly powerful new nuclear power plant - Sanosyan

YEREVAN, November 4. /ARKA/. Armenia does not need a particularly powerful new nuclear power plant, said today Territorial Administration and Infrastructure Minister Gnel Sanosyan.

"We have done a lot of work to try to understand Armenia's energy needs in the coming years, namely until 2040-2050. A total of 21 scenarios were considered to determine how our economy will develop, how much energy consumption will increase, and what impact electric vehicles and electricity exports will have. Most of these scenarios suggest that we don't need a particularly powerful new power plant, also considering the existing other generating plants and the development of solar energy," Sanosyan told reporters. 

According to him, the capacity of the new power plant could be higher than the current one, but not more than 600 MW. Sanosyan added that research will be conducted on both the technologies that can be used in the construction of the new plant and the models for financing future work. 

About the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant 

The Armenian NPP, the only one in the South Caucasus region, is located near the town of Metsamor, approximately 30 km west of Yerevan. The plant is one of the main sources of electricity in the country, providing up to 40% of the total output. Its service life has been extended until 2026, and work id underway to re-extend it for another 10 years.

The construction of a new plant may take 8-10 years; currently various options are being compared and the experience of partners from Russia, the USA, the South Korea is being studied. -0-