Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Station, Nuclear power station in Zarechny, Russia.
The Beloyarsk Nuclear Power Station is a power plant in Zarechny, Russia, currently operating two fast breeder reactors that use liquid sodium for cooling. The facility's towers and buildings spread across a wide site on the shore of the Beloyarsk Reservoir, with several reactor blocks from different construction periods standing side by side.
Operations began in 1964 with a graphite-moderated reactor and marked the third nuclear energy site in the Soviet Union. The facility shifted to fast breeder technology over the following decades, replacing older units with modern sodium-cooled reactors.
The plant's operation led to the establishment of the town of Zarechny, which was built as a residence for technical staff and their families. The community grew around the technical infrastructure and still shows the typical planning of Soviet atomic cities today, with central services and residential blocks near the facility.
The facility sits roughly 30 miles (50 kilometers) east of Yekaterinburg in a controlled area with no public access. Travelers can view the cooling towers and buildings from outside in the surrounding area, particularly from roads around the reservoir.
The BN-800 reactor can use mixed fuel from uranium and plutonium, processing spent fuel elements from other power plants. This technology reduces the volume of long-lived radioactive waste by using materials that would otherwise need storage.
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