The feedwater supply tank (BZPV – Bak Zapasa Pitatelnoi Vodi) has been delivered to unit 3 of the Akkuyu NPP under construction in Türkiye. The required rigging was prepared to receive the first large-sized equipment inside the turbine hall. The BZPV was first transported to the turbine building on an automatic wheeled platform. Specialists then moved the tank to the turbine maintenance area using a self-propelled caterpillar with a carrying capacity of 1,300 tonnes.
The BZPV, an important component of the turbine heat exchange equipment, is a thick-walled vessel weighing 259 tonnes with a length of more than 40 metres. Its large size means it is only possible to transport and move the tank in parts using lifting equipment. Two semi-hulls of the BZPV were delivered to the NPP site and transported to the installation site. Final assembly will be completed after installation of the support equipment.
“We are gradually preparing the engine room at unit 3 of the NPP for the installation of the main equipment of the turbine plant,” said Sergei Butskikh, First Deputy General Director of project company Akkuyu Nukleer and Director of the Akkuyu NPP under construction. “The main technological marker of the building, located at a height of 18.2 meters from ground level, is ready to accept loads from heavy equipment, so the feedwater tank was transported to the engine room immediately after unloading at the Vostochny cargo terminal and completing the necessary customs procedures. After installing the special supports, the specialists will move it to its original location and weld the two parts of the body. In parallel, work continues on concreting the walls of the engine room.”
At the stages of commissioning and operation of the NPP, a supply of water for the feed pumps of the NPP is stored in the BZPV. The tank also accepts water discharged from other components of the machine room equipment – superheater separators and a high-pressure heater. The service life of the feedwater supply tank is at least 60 years, and it is designed for the entire life cycle of a power unit with a VVER-1200 reactor. The equipment manufacturer is the Zio Podolsk plant, which is part of Rosatom’s mechanical engineering division.
Akkuyu NPP will eventually host four Russian-designed VVER-1200 reactors. The pouring of first concrete for unit 1 took place in April 2018, for unit 2 in June 2020, for unit 3 in March 2021, and for unit 4 in July 2022. Rosatom is constructing the reactors according to a build-own-operate model. Unit 1 is expected to begin operation in 2025. In July Akkuyu NPP reported that some 70% of the equipment and systems installed at unit 1 had already undergone commissioning.
