Russia’s state-run nuclear corporation Rosatom will commission the first power unit of the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant (BelAES) by the end of next year, Chief Executive Officer Aleksei Likhachev said at a meeting with Belarusian Prime Minister Sergei Rumas on Saturday.

"The elder brother of the Belarusian plant - the first unit of the second Leningrad Nuclear Power Plant (LNPP) - has undergone production tests and operates at its full capacity as of today. It is going to be commissioned by the end of the year. Thus, we are preparing for a similar procedure here (in Belarus) taking into account the gained experience, we assume that it is going to happen by the end of next year," he said.

According to Rumas, that is Belarus’ biggest project, particularly in terms of investments.

The first nuclear power plant in Belarus is being built with the use of Russian technologies near the town of Ostrovets in the Grodno region. It will consist of two power units with the total capacity of 2,400-megawatt. The launch of the first power unit is planned for 2019, the second will be commissioned in 2020. Atomstroiexport, part of Rosatom, is the general contractor for the construction of the nuclear power plant.