Meet Chernobyl’s twin-sister: Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant in Lithuania

Calling out all HBO’s Chernobyl fans! Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant, located in Lithuania, which was used for filming the top-rated Chernobyl TV series opened its gates for visitors. And guess what? You can come visit this twin-sister of Chernobyl with ChernobylX.

Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant is, very much likely as her Chernobyl twin-sister, surrounded by a city built for 40 000 citizens. However, this whole new zone was a bit smaller – only 3 out of 4 reactors & 3 out of 6 districts of the city were finished at the time of Chernobyl disaster.

History

Preparations for the construction began in 1974. Field work began four years later. Unit 1 was launched in December 1983, and was closed on December 31, 2004. Unit 2 was launched in August 1987 and was closed on December 31, 2009. Originally, Unit 2 was scheduled for launch in 1986, but its commissioning was postponed for a year because of the Chernobyl disaster earlier that year. The construction of Unit 3 started in 1985, but was suspended in 1988, and its demolition began in 1989. Its dismantling was completed in 2008. Ignalina was sited next to the largest lake in Lithuania, which provided the plant’s cooling water. As a condition of entry into the European Union, Lithuania agreed in 1999 to close existing units of the station, citing the Ignalina plant’s lack of containment building as a high risk. The EU agreed to pay 820 million eur decommissioning costs and compensations, with payments continuing until 2013.

Our 1 day tour will bring you not only to the town of Visaginas, but also inside the Lithuanian decommissioned nuclear power plant that gives you an experience which is not possible in Chernobyl, because of safety reasons. Imagine walking above the reactor in reactor halls, seeing the control rooms that are almost identical to those in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, and exploring prohibited places of this Chernobyl clone. All this unique possibilities creates a once-in-a-lifetime experience for every Chernobyl fan!