Dukovany Nuclear Power Station

The plant has four reactors. As of 31 December 2011 ČEZ reported turbine generator output (gross capacity) as listed below. Net capacity is a baseline estimate only. In 2005, Unit 3 was upgraded to 456 MWe gross capacity, and the same upgrade was made to Unit 1 and Unit 4 in 2007. Unit 3 was further upgraded in 2009 to 500MWe. In total an extra 240 MWe of capacity has been or will be added before 2013 in a comprehensive program of improvements including steam plant replacement, addition of instrumentation and fuel changes. The reactors are fuelled by uranium dioxide UO2. Fuel is placed in the reactor in 312 fuel assemblies. Each assembly consists of 126 fuel rods with a hermetically sealed fuel. Dukovany Nuclear Power Station has 8 cooling towers, each 125 metres tall. In 1994, a visitor information centre was opened at the site. West of the facility there is a guyed tower for monitoring air radioactivity. In 2025 the dismantling of a 1970s gas flue chimney of a auxiliary boiler predating the reactors started. In 2023, ČEZ planned to invest more than CZK2.3 billion ($105 million) mainly to ensure "safe and reliable operation until at least 2047" with a lifetime of at least 60 years. The units are also switching to a 16-month fuel replacement cycle from the current 12-month cycle. In addition to four reactor units, the Dukovany Nuclear Power Station complex includes two other nuclear facilities, a low- and medium-level radioactive waste storage facility, and two spent nuclear fuel storage facilities with a total capacity of 194 fuel assemblies. ==Power distribution==

The power lines leaving Dukovany Nuclear Power Station are mainly installed on delta type pylons. They run to Slavetice substation situated at 49°6'15" N and 16°7'10" E. At this substation the powerline to Dürnrohr in Austria starts. Plant owner ČEZ plans to install a district heating circuit to supply heat to homes and businesses in Brno. A pipeline over 40 kilometres in length could be installed after regional officials have considered ČEZ's environmental impact statement for the project, submitted in July 2010. ==Replacement==

In 2019 the Czech government gave preliminary approval for at least one new nuclear power unit for about 2035 to replace the four units expected to shut down between 2035 and 2037. The financial model proposed is a state guarantee so finance can be obtained at government interest rates, but no subsidy on operating costs or above market-price electricity rates. In January 2021 Chinese companies were excluded from bidding for political and security reasons, following advice from the security services of EU and NATO member states. In April 2021, it was announced that Russia's Rosatom would be excluded as well, after it has been alleged that two Russian agents were perpetrators of the 2014 Vrbětice ammunition warehouses explosions. In June 2021, the Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade invited EDF, along with Westinghouse and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) to participate in a pre-qualification round for a new unit at the Dukovany Nuclear Power Station. EDF is proposing a 1200 MWe version of the EPR for the project, named the EPR-1200. On 31 October 2023, the three companies delivered bids for AP1000, APR1000 and EPR-1200 reactors respectively. The bids will be evaluated with the aim of construction starting in 2029 with first trial operation in 2036. In July 2024 it was announced that KHNP had been selected to construct two APR1000 reactors rated at 1,055 MWe for a cost of US$8.6 billion each. EDF challenged the decision on the basis the bid was "unfeasible without illegal state aid", however the Supreme Administrative Court of the Czech Republic rejected the challenge. In December 2025, the European Commission launched an inquiry into the funding plan. == Recent event ==

In 2024, the Czech government selected South Korea’s Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) to construct two APR-1000 reactors at the Dukovany site, each with a capacity of 1,055 megawatts. This decision is part of the country's long-term strategy to increase the share of nuclear energy to up to 50% of national electricity production by 2050. The project is being overseen by the state-owned energy company ČEZ, with the government holding an 80% stake in the subsidiary responsible for the new reactors. In January 2025, a preliminary agreement was signed with KHNP; however, in May 2025, the signing of the final contract was temporarily paused due to a legal challenge from the French company EDF, a competing bidder. The delay is procedural, pending judicial review. Despite this, the Czech government remains committed to the project, with trial operations of the first new reactor expected by 2036 and the second by 2038. In April 2024, the European Commission decided to reduce state aid for the Dukovany NPP in the form of a contract for difference by at least 80%: shortening the duration of this financial instrument from the 60 years proposed by the Czech government to 40 years and limiting the volume of electricity sold under the contract from 100% (the government’s proposal) to a maximum of 30% (the remaining at least 70% of electricity must be sold on market terms). Later in May the European Commission (EC) asked the Czech government to delay signing the contract, citing concerns over the tender process and potential legal issues. This has sparked criticism from Czech industry leaders, who argue that postponing the deal could harm the country's energy security and economic interests. ==Popular culture==

The Dukovany reactor complex appears in the video game ''Tom Clancy's EndWar'' as a potential battlefield. ==See also==