The 160t third (upper) tier of the outer containment dome has been installed at unit 2 of Russia's Novovoronezh NPP Phase Two (NNPP-II), the Group of Companies ASE said on June 22. Before the installation, the outer containment dome was pre-assembled at zero elevation. The next stage will be concreting the dome. The AES-2006 design NNPP-II is built with a double-walled (outer and inner) containment around the reactor building. Commissioning of unit 2 is planned for October 2018.
The containment dome consists of three tiers. After the first tier, which is the lower part, was installed the intermediate section (the second tier) was installed on 8 June. Its 12 parts constituent parts were first put together in the assembly area of the construction site.
NNPP-II is the lead project for the deployment of the AES-2006 design incorporating a Gidropress-designed pressurized water reactor, an evolutionary development from the VVER-1000. Construction of units 1 and 2 began in June 2008 and July 2009, respectively. The new Novovoronezh units will have a passive heat removal system that, in the event of loss of on-site power supply, will provide long-term heat removal from the reactor core to the atmosphere using natural circulation.
