The third Mochovce unit is no longer in the construction phase, after the first fuel assembly was loaded, it became the fifth nuclear unit operated in Slovakia. In the next four months or so, Slovenské elektrárne will undergo successively the phases of physical tests, power escalation tests and the final 144-hour trial run of the 471 MW unit at full power. Branislav Strýček, chairman of the Board of Directors and general director of Slovenské elektrárne, a.s., stated today at a press conference in Mochovce.
"Today we are beginning to write a new chapter of the energy sector in Slovakia and Europe. It is a peak of the long-standing project, which is one of the largest and most demanding in Europe, both financially and also infrastructurally. When fully operational, Mochovce Unit 3 will cover 13% of Slovakia's electricity consumption. This will make our country self-sufficient. At the same time, we will have one of the cleanest energy mixes in Europe. Achieving this milestone would not have been possible without the people from Slovenské elektrárne, our contractors and experts from the European nuclear industry, especially from Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Our thanks go to them."
Branislav Strýček, chairman of the Board of Directors and general director of Slovenské elektrárne, a.s.
With the loading of fuel into the reactor on 9 September, the whole commissioning process is just beginning.
The loading itself takes 108 hours, followed by reactor assembly, pre-critical tests, reaching criticality and physical tests.
All these steps are part of the so-called physical startup, which takes about six weeks.
In the next phase of the energy startup, the reactor power is gradually increased and a number of tests are carried out. Even situations that the plant will never experience during its operation. The power level is gradually increased to 5, 20, 35, 55, 75, 90 and finally 100% of the reactor output.
As the thermal output of the reactor increases, so does the amount of steam that spins the turbines in the power plant. Only in this second commissioning phase, the first megawatt hours from the new Mochovce 3 unit will reach the Slovak electricity grid and the electricity produced free of carbon dioxide emissions will light up the households and factories in Slovakia.
The commissioning is finished by a 144-hour trial run of Mochovce Unit 3 at its full power.
Slovakia will thus become energy self-sufficient in terms of electricity production as early as 2023. And the CO2 free electricity supply from Slovenské elektrárne, a.s. will approach 100%. The operating life of the new unit is planned to be at least 60 years.
The first assembly loading into the reactor was preceded by the official signing of the second instance decision on the commissioning of the power plant by Marta Žiaková, the chairwoman of the Nuclear Regulatory Authority of the Slovak Republic (NRA), which made this document legally valid and enforceable. The signature of the chairwoman of the NRA and the handing over of the licence to Branislav Strýček, the general director of Slovenské elektrárne, a.s., took place directly in the reactor hall.
More than 64.3% of all electricity generated in Slovakia comes from Slovenské elektrárne. The electricity supplied to the grid covers about 60% of the country's consumption. In particular, thanks to nuclear power plants, Slovakia's largest producer supplies up to 94% of its electricity free of carbon dioxide emissions, which is considered to be one of the greenhouse gases responsible for global warming.
In addition to nuclear power plants, the company also operates 31 hydro, 2 thermal and 2 photovoltaic power plants. Their total capacity at the end of 2021 was 4,143.8 megawatts.
The company has two shareholders. The majority shareholder is Slovak Power Holding B.V. (SPH), holding a 66.0000000523% share in the share capital. In SPH, EP Slovakia B.V. (a subsidiary of the EPH Group) holds 50% of the share capital and the remaining 50% belongs to Enel Produzione S.p.A (a subsidiary of the Enel Group).
The minority shareholder of Slovenské elektrárne with a 33,9999999477% share in the share capital is the Slovak Republic (shareholder's rights are executed by the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic).
