They decided to build a third unit of the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant in addition to the two existing ones.
According to the state news agency BelTA
Minsk is considering the prospect of building a third unit at the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant. This position was voiced by Deputy Prime Minister Viktor Karankevych during a meeting with industry leaders, according to an information agency’s official statement.
Following the meeting, a decision was made on the development of the Astravets NPP and the implementation of the second phase of constructing the third power unit. At the same time, the leaders announced plans to explore sites in the Mogilev Region for further development of nuclear energy.
The third power unit is planned to be built in addition to the two existing ones. To implement this project, more than a thousand additional workers will be needed, said during the meeting by the Belarusian NPP’s General Director Serhiy Babovych.
On March 9, 2023, Lithuanian intelligence stated that last year Belarus and Rosatom concealed incidents and defects in the reactor systems of the BelAES’s first and second units. In April 2022, the BelAES’s first unit was halted for planned maintenance, but defects discovered during the maintenance were not reported, the intelligence briefing noted.
The Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that there is a risk of technical malfunctions at the plant even after the second unit comes online.
Context and International Reaction
The Belarusian Ministry of Energy rejected the Lithuanian intelligence’s conclusions, calling them a targeted action to discredit BelAES, and assured that in 2022 the station underwent planned repairs that met the requirements of supervisory authorities and international norms.
Lithuania has repeatedly expressed doubts about the choice of site for the construction of the NPP near the town of Astravets. The country listed ten reasons not to build the BelAES, and also accused Belarusian authorities of concealing information about the plant’s condition. Lithuania has for many years taken an active position on the construction of BelAES at a high national and international level.
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