Russia’s Leningrad nuclear power plant has commissioned a full-scale simulator for the new generation of power units with VVER-1200MWe pressurised water reactors under construction at the Leningrad II site.
In December 2015, after successfully completing acceptance tests of the full-scale simulator, a year of pilot operation was launched. The simulator uses complex mathematical models, said Deputy Head of the Training Division of Studies Sergei Rechkin . The software package is able to reproduce all the modes of operation of the nuclear power plant, as well as to simulate various contingencies and emergencies, he noted.
The existing Leningrad units 1-4 are RBMKs, and are to be retired between 2019 and 2026. New units, Leningrad II 1 and 2, are scheduled to be connected to the grid this year and next. The plant's management said commissioning of the simulator comes "well before" the start-up of the first unit of replacement capacity, in line with international safety standards.
