At the official ceremony of putting the plant into operation, President Putin pressed the start button on the hydropower plant’s central console.
Addressing the builders, engineers and designers of the plant, he pointed to the great importance of the plant for the economy of the entire Far East. He stressed that the implementation of that large-scale project would improve power supplies to the region, help set up new businesses and as a result would create new jobs.
The Bureyskaya plant is the first large hydro-electric power plant put into operation following the disintegration of the Soviet Union. It is the twelfth Russian federal hydropower station. So far only one of its six generating units has been activated, with the other five being completed, the last one is scheduled to enter operation at the end of 2006.
The launching of all units of the plant will close the power gap in the Far East and create the possibility of exporting electricity to neighbouring countries.