Nuclear power in the Soviet Union

At its peak in 1982, nuclear power in the Soviet Union accounted for 6.5% of total electricity consumption and the total nuclear capacity installed was 18 GW.[1] However, nuclear power within the Soviet Union declined severely as a result of the 1986 Chernobyl Disaster.

History
The Obninsk Nuclear Power Plant in 2008.

The first nuclear power plant constructed in the world was the Obninsk Nuclear Power Plant, built near Moscow on June 26, 1954. It was intended as an experiment to determine the capabilities of nuclear power in supplying a commercial grid. At the beginning of its operation, it produced 5 MWe. [2]

The power plant proved successful in its experiment and four years later, the Siberian Nuclear Power Station with a 100 MWe capacity was installed and subsequently increased to 600 MWe. Following the development, commercial power stations were constructed in Beloyarsk, Novo-Voronezh, Kola, Leningrad, and Armenia. [3]

Later Years

In the year 1960, the Soviet Union had a nuclear power capacity of 605 MWe. By 1975, this capacity was increased to 4.7 GW.[3] At this point, the Soviet Union was committed to developing an aggressive nuclear power program. Throughout the 1970s, approximately 10% of electricity powering the Soviet Union came from Nuclear Power Plants and predictions made by Deputy Minister of Power Energy aimed an increase by approximately 400-500% by the year 2000.[4]

Chernobyl Disaster of April 26, 1986
The remains of Reactor No. 4 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant

On April 26, 1986 an uncontrolled power increase occurred within the core of Reactor No. 4 at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant causing an explosion within the core that destroyed the reactor itself and began to spew radioactive dust into the atmosphere and surrounding environment, resulting in thousands of cancer-related deaths. [5] [6] The Chernobyl Disaster is one of two disasters ranked as a Level 7 on the International Nuclear Event Scale for the spread of radioactive material and environmental effects. [7]

Following the 1986 incident, stances on nuclear power changed, especially so in the USSR. [8] The incident highlighted the threat of the country's 24 RBMK reactors, which were found to have been created with major operational flaws that cause uncontrollable spikes in energy during a reactor's emergency shutdown procedure. [9] These required re-design or replacement to meet safety standards for operation. [4] [10]

Regardless, the event slowed the nuclear energy program of the Soviet Union, which would not see reinvigoration until after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.

List of Reactors
Name Location Type Gross Capacity (MWe) Operational Notes
Obninsk Obninsk RBMK 5 1954-2002 World's first nuclear power plant
Novovoronezh Novovoronezh VVER 210 1964-1988
VVER 365 1970-1990
VVER 417 1972-2016
VVER 417 1973- Shutdown expected 2032
VVER 950 1981- Shutdown expected 2035
Beloyarsk Zarechny, Sverdlovsk Oblast RBMK 108 1958-1983
RBMK 160 1962-1990
BN-600 600 1969-
BN-800 885 1987-
Kola Polyarnye Zori VVER 440 1973- Shutdown expected 2033
VVER 440 1975- Shutdown expected 2034
VVER 440 1982- Shutdown expected 2026
VVER 440 1984- Shutdown expected 2029
Leningrad Sosnovy Bor RBMK 1000 1974-2018
RBMK 1000 1976-2020
RBMK 1000 1980- Shutdown expected 2025
RBMK 1000 1981- Shutdown expected 2026
Armenian Yerevan VVER 407.5 1969-1989
VVER 407.5 1975- Shutdown expected 2026
Kursk Kursk RBMK 1000 1977-2021
RBMK 1000 1979- Shutdown expected 2024
RBMK 1000 1984- Shutdown expected 2029
RBMK 1000 Planned 1992 Construction stopped 1989, cancelled in 2012
Chernobyl Chernobyl RBMK 1000 1977-1995 Shutdown as a result of the Chernobyl Disaster
RBMK 1000 1978-1991 Shutdown as a result of fire damage
RBMK 1000 1981-1995 Shutdown as a result of the Chernobyl Disaster
RBMK 1000 1983-1986 Destroyed in the Chernobyl Disaster
RBMK 1000 Planned 1986 Postponed to 1989, then cancelled by Chernobyl Disaster
RBMK 1000 Planned 1986 Postponed to 1989, then cancelled by Chernobyl Disaster
Rivne Varash VVER 440 1981-?
VVER 440 1982-?
VVER 440 1986-?
South Ukraine Yuzhnoukrainsk RBMK 1000 1983-?
RBMK 1000 1985-?
RBMK 1000 1989-?
Smolensk Smolensk RBMK 1000 1983- Shutdown expected 2027
RBMK 1000 1985- Shutdown expected 2030
RBMK 1000 1990- Shutdown expected 2034
RBMK 1000 Planned ~1994 Construction cancelled 1993

See also

References
  1. Semenov, B.A. "Nuclear power in the Soviet Union" (PDF). IAEA. Retrieved 17 September 2019.
  2. Morrissey, John (March 15, 2015). "Obninsk Nuclear Power Plant". Stanford University.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. Zheludev, I.S. "Nuclear power in the USSR" (PDF). IAEA. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  4. Walker, Martin. "The vision consumed in the fire this time". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  5. "Chernobyl Accident 1986". World Nuclear. May 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2022.
  6. "What was the death toll from Chernobyl and Fukushima?". Our World in Data. Retrieved 2022-02-25.
  7. "Level 7 Major Nuclear Accidents: Chernobyl Death Toll and Fukushima". HuffPost. 2011-04-22. Retrieved 2022-02-25.
  8. Walker, Christopher. "Accident a blow to expanding energy industry". The Times. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  9. Karpan, N. V. "Chernobyl". IKK "Balans-Klub". Retrieved 22 January 2022.
  10. Tucker, Anthony. "Chernobyl factors". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
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