The operating licence for Unit 6 of the Kozloduy nuclear power station in northern Bulgaria was extended today by 10 years until 2029, a statement by the station said.

Kozloduy-6, a 1003-MW VVER V-320 unit, began commercial operation in December 1993, but was connected to the national grid in August 1991.

Bulgarian law caps operation licence extensions for nuclear reactor units at 10 years.

Bulgaria has two nuclear units in commercial operation, Kozloduy-5 and Kozloduy-6. They are both Russian-designed VVERs and produce about 33% of the country’s electricity.

Unit-5 received a 10-year licence extension in November 2017.

In April 2018, the Bulgarian regulator licensed Kozloduy-6 to operate at 104% of its design capacity.

Since its grid connection in 1991, Kozloduy-6 has generated 174.85 TWh of electricity and avoided the emission of about 208 million tonnes of CO2 in the atmosphere.