The welding all 28 joints of the main circulating pipeline at unit 1 of the Ostrovets NPP under construction in Belarus was completed on 21 August, six days ahead of schedule, according to Russia's ASE Group (part of state nuclear corporation Rosatom), which is general contractor for the project. The welding began on 4 June 2017 and was completed in 78 days instead of the scheduled 84, a statement said. The main circulation pipeline has a diameter of 85cm, a thickness of 7cm and a total length of over 130 metres. It connects the main equipment of the primary circuit: the reactor, steam generators and main circulation pumps. Two 1,109MWe VVER-1200 reactors units are under construction at the plant. Construction of unit 1 began in November 2013 and of unit 2 in April 2014. Unit 1 is scheduled to start up in November 2018.
