The concrete works were preceded by a long-term preparation period. The department for nuclear and radiation safety of the Emergencies Ministry of Belarus (Gosatomnadzor) had planned to have the documentation ready as early as in August, but the terms had to be changed. According to Olga Lugovskaya, the head of the department, the licensing itself was a very complex and demanding procedure. “The documents submitted to get the license represent large volumes, thousands of pages. Experts have to work hard to study them, clearly decide, get proof that the suggested technologies are safe and should be used,”- she said.

Today the Belarusian authority has not got anymore doubts concerning the Ostrovets NPP safety. The preparatory works at both reactors are finished, the infrastructure is ready the construction base, 33 km of railroad and 24 km of a highway are ready. Residential estate for future employees of the plant are under construction. On the 2nd of November President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko signed a decree allowing the principal contractor – Atomstroyexport, part of Rosatom – to start building Belarus NPP.

According to Mikhail Filimonov, the head of NPP directorate, the foundation concreting of unit 1 objects started this November. Belarus NPP, consisting of two power units with the total capacity up to 2400 (2х1200) MW will be built on the site in Ostrovets, Grodno Region. It will be based on the AES-2006 project, fully corresponding international norms and IAEA requirements. The first unit is planned to be put into industrial operation in November 2018 and the second one in July 2020. The general contract for construction of the plant was signed by Russia and Belarus in Minsk in July 2012. The construction is financed mostly by Russian state export loan of up to USD 10 billion for a 25 years period, according to an intergovernmental agreement.