The decommissioning work for Units 1 and 2 of the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant has been launched. Photo by BGNES
The first operation of the planned decommissioning of Units 1 and 2 at the Kozloduy NPP has started, the Radioactive Waste State-owned Company has announced.
Units 1 and 2 of the nuclear power plant were taken offline in end-2002.
The program for the gradual decommissioning of the nuke has been approved by Bulgaria's Nuclear Regulation Agency.
The first few days of the operation will be devoted to preparatory work such as removing the wool insulation, reinforcing the facilities ensuring safe decommissioning, etc.
The shut-down operations are expected to be wrapped up in a month.
The dismantled equipment will be temporarily stored at a platform owned by the Radioactive Waste State-owned Company located on the territory of the Kozloduy NPP.
Bulgaria has recently moved to extend the life of the 1000-MW Units 5 and 6 of the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant, the only Bulgarian NPP, whose 440-MW Units 1-4 were shut down in 2002-2006 as part of Bulgaria's EU accession negotiations