NPP Dukovany

NPP Dukovany is the first nuclear power plant built on Czech territory and is one of the largest, most reliable and economically advantageous energy sources of ČEZ. Located 30 km southeast of the UNESCO town Třebíč, it produces around 15 TWh of electricity annually, which covers approx. 20% of total electricity consumption in the Czech Republic. Compared to other major domestic power plants, it generates electricity at the lowest specific cost and without CO2 emissions, contributing to energy security and self-sufficiency of the country.

The power plant has four production units with pressurized VVER 440 water reactors, model V 213. The individual units were put into operation between 1985 and 1987. The original total installed electrical capacity was 1760 MW. Attainable power output has been gradually increasing thanks to turbine upgrades, efficiency programs and technical improvements.  Today, the power plant has an installed capacity of 2040 MW. The thermal output of each of the four reactors is 1444 MWt.

The power plant's production and safety systems are continuously modernized, and the facility meets all current requirements for the operation of nuclear power plants. The safety and reliability of the operation is supervised by several domestic and international authorities (State Office for Nuclear Safety, IAEA, WANO and others).

Efforts to continuously improve reliability and safety continue. Regular maintenance and refueling shut-downs are often used for modernization activities.  The first major equipment renovation program was carried out between 1994-1996. In 1999-2000 reconstruction of condensers took place, followed by modernization of low-pressure turbine parts in 2003. Another major modernization took place between 2007-2012. In spring 2016, new cooling fan towers with a height of almost 17 meters were installed in the Dukovany power plant. It was one of several recommendations that followed from stress tests carried out after the Fukushima accident. The new towers allow cooling of important power plant components even at extreme temperatures of +/- 46.2 degrees Celsius, withstand winds up to 252 km per hour, and earthquakes of up to 5.5 degrees on the Richter scale.

In 2016-2017, the power plant received new operating licenses for all four units for an indefinite period, supplemented by several operating conditions. The expected operation of the power plant is until 2037 with the possibility of extension until 2047.

The Dukovany nuclear power plant is the largest employer in the region. Three thousand CEZ Group employees and suppliers work directly at the power plant. A further study by Charles University in Prague showed that the operation of the power plant creates up to thirty thousand jobs.

Two other nuclear facilities can also be found on the NPP Dukovany premises. One of them is used nuclear fuel storage with a capacity for 194 CASTOR 440/84 containers, completed in 1995. The capacity of one such container (10 tons of spent nuclear fuel) corresponds to the amount of waste produced by one VVER 440 reactor in almost one year. The other facility is the low and intermediate rad-waste storage compound, which is operated by the state.

If you are interested in more information about NPP Dukovany, you can visit the Information Center in its vicinity.