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    Completion of this task significantly improves fire safety of the New Safe Confinement.

    The sections of potentially inflammable roof of Turbine Hall located in the area of Arch End Walls within axes 60-62 and 38-40 were dismantled under the project of NSC enclosing perimeter which was completed by construction at the end of 2017.

    In the first half of February 2018, three sections within axes 52-54, 56-58 and 60-62 were dismantled. Consequently, the whole area of the roof defined by the design was dismantled.

    The work was carried out with two cranes whose lifting power makes 300 and 270 tons. One of them was positioned on the pioneer wall and the other one - to the north of Shelter Deaerator Stack within the NSC temporary storage area.

    Currently, the activities associated with cutting the dismantled structures and their removal to specially equipped area for their storage are underway. The dismantled slabs are decontaminated if necessary.

    As of February 15, 2018, about 15 % of the dismantled slabs have been removed.

    During the work period, the reference levels of external exposure (13 mSv) established for the NOVARKA (Contracting organization) personnel were not exceeded. No emergencies or incidents were recorded.

    A series of technological operations was hone to perfection as part of the preparation for the on-site transport container (OTC) testing. In particular, 71-tons OTC was installed on the trolley for the canisters handling and transportation system, after that OTC was delivered to one of the premises of the facility for Spent Fuel preparation for storage. Further using the the crane with loading capacity of 125 tons, OTC was lifted to the vertical position and moved to one of the special carriages.

    OTC HI-TRAC-H is the most important equipment ensuring the safety during Spent Nuclear Fuel handling at ISF-2, it performs the radiation protection functions for the personnel and provides heat removal during operations for SNF drying, DWSC filling with helium and DWSC welding, transportation and loading into concrete storage module. This is one of the key elements of the temporary dry storage system implemented at ISF-2 for ChNPP's RBMK-1000 Spent Nuclear Fuel long-term temporary storage.

    Transportation and handover for disposal of RAW packages produced at the Liquid Radioactive Waste Treatment Plant (LRTP) into the Engineered Near-Surface Solid RAW Disposal Facility (ENSDF) commenced on January 31. The first batch in this year – four packages of RAW – was transported to the disposal facility. The further handover of RAW packages to the ENSDF is to be implemented according to the schedule approved between the Chernobyl NPP and State Specialized Enterprise "Central Enterprise for Management of Radioactive Waste" (SSE “CEMRW”) to which the ENSDF belongs. The available RAW packages are transported to make room for the end product storage at the beginning of LRTP operation.

    As noted by the Deputy Technical Director (for RAW Management) Oleksandr Skomarokhov, at the beginning of 2018 the Chernobyl NPP has approached the final stage of LRTP commissioning: “A separate permit for the LRTP operation was given to the enterprise in December 2014. Before that all required tests of the LRTP had been carried out. These tests resulted in production of 63 packages with RAW. Four packages were transported to the ENSDF in 2014 to fulfil the whole processing chain of RAW management. Other packages were stored at the LRTP within the end product curing premise in accordance with the permissions of the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine (SNRIU)”.

    Works on anchoring the sealing membrane of the New Safe Confinement’s Arch are carried out within the Chernobyl NPP Unit 4 premise.

    Yurii Filimonov — foreman of a drilling unit of the Shelter Object (New Safe Confinement) Operation Shop (hereinafter — SO(NSC)OP) — explains: “Now we are working on ensuring 100% attachment of sealing anchors in the points of contact between the Arch and Block V [Unit No.4 — ed.]. The design area of attaching the sealing anchors is ensured not at all reinforced concrete structures available at these points. Therefore, in order to reduce the work execution period and provide substantial assistance to the contacting organization, the SO(NSC)OP, represented by a combined team, executes works on deepening the niches in the points of bonding the sealing anchors with the building structures.

    The work is performed within premises No.7001 and No.6004 under high radiation fields. These activities are carried out by several teams to reduce dose burdens onto personnel. 

    Currently we need in the shortest time possible to ensure execution of the drilling and grooving works within these premises.” 

    “The works are carried out in tough conditions. We use both gas and electrical cutting of metal as the concrete supporting structures have inclusions of re-bars. They should be cut because they impede attaching the anchors,” — adds Sviatoslav Mamykin — electric and gas welder of the SO(NSC)OP’s non-stationary equipment repair sector.

    On January 17, 2018, Chairman of the State Nuclear Regulatory Inspectorate of Ukraine Hryhoriy Plachkov visited Chernobyl NPP.

    During the familiarization visit Mr Plachkov paid the special attention to the completion of construction of Spent Nuclear Fuel Storage Facility No. 2 (ISF-2). The most part of the facility equipment is at the stage of the comprehensive testing and it is planned to perform the "hot" tests in 2018.

    At ISF-2 construction site the Chief Engineer of the Safety Improvement Project Andrii Savin and the representatives of the General Contractor HOLTEC International familiarized the guest with the work progress and future plans.

    After that the delegation, accompanied by top managers of ChNPP and Shelter Implementation Plan Project Management Unit performed a technical tour inside the New Safe Confinement.

    1. Chernobyl NPP won a tender for examination of radioactive waste samples
    2. NSC enclosing perimeter is certified
    3. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
    4. Dismantling of structures under the NSC Arch

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