Armenia and Rosatom Coordinate the Second Life Extension of Metsamor NPP Unit 2: Reviewing Phase Results and Locking In Key Tasks for 2027–2030

On October 7, 2026, the fifth working meeting of the Joint Coordination Committee of the Republic of Armenia and Rosatom was held in Yerevan, comprehensively reviewing the phased implementation results of the major project for the second life extension (LTO-2) of Unit 2 of the Armenian NPP (ANPP, located in Metsamor), and formally countersigned the execution agreement for advancing engineering tasks from 2027 to 2030.

Kirill Komarov, First Deputy Director General and Director for International Business Development of Rosatom, led the Russian delegation, while Narek Apitonyan, Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure of Armenia, led the Armenian delegation. Khachatur Khachikyan, Chairman of the Armenian Nuclear Safety Regulatory Committee, Evgeny Salkov, General Director of Rusatom Service, and Movses Vardanyan, General Director of the Armenian NPP, along with other senior executives, jointly participated in the discussions.

The meeting summarized the core results achieved by the joint Russian-Armenian engineering team during 2024–2026. Data shows that the technical team has completed a comprehensive technical inspection of key buildings and structures with a total floor area of 15,890 square meters at the nuclear power plant; prepared and formally approved a complete set of technical review documents confirming the safe operation of the reactor unit until 2031; delivered more than 500 items of key equipment and specialized materials; completed a comprehensive upgrade and renovation of the safety-class emergency power supply and critical load power supply systems at the nuclear power plant; and currently the in-service monitoring of reactor metal components and the non-destructive testing procedures for metal quality are being advanced as planned.

Both parties at the meeting reached consensus and formally approved the documents confirming the previous phase results as well as the medium- and long-term action program for 2027–2030. Evgeny Salkov, General Director of Rusatom Service, noted that the previous work has technically locked in the engineering margin for safe reactor operation until 2031, and that a new round of in-depth modification work targeting the core systems of the nuclear island will be launched in the coming year, ultimately ensuring the smooth and safe operation of the unit until 2036.

The Armenian NPP is located near the city of Metsamor and is equipped with two VVER-440 pressurized water reactor units featuring seismic reinforcement. The currently operating Unit 2 completed its first round of major modernization overhaul in 2021 with technical support from Rosatom and successfully extended its life until 2026. According to the nuclear energy continuation law adopted by the Armenian government in 2023, the Armenian NPP operating company and Rusatom Service signed a framework general contract for the second life extension in December 2023, planning to implement a series of key engineering works including restorative annealing of the reactor pressure vessel and comprehensive replacement and upgrade of the safety and instrumentation & control (I&C) systems, fully aligning with current International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safety standards and ensuring the continued stability of the country's core baseload energy supply.