Russian Nuclear Chief Urges Construction of Atomic Power Plants
Posted on: Wednesday, 1 February 2006, 09:00 CST
The large-scale construction of nuclear power plants should begin in Russia in 2012, the head of the Federal Atomic Energy Agency (Rosatom), Sergey Kiriyenko, has told journalists in Krasnoyarsk Territory's town of Zheleznogorsk, RIA news agency reported on 1 February.
If the atomic energy sector is to account for 25 per cent of the total energy production in Russia by 2030, "it means that we must build some 40 power units", Kiriyenko said.
"We must finalize a number of projects meeting world standards in the atomic energy domain, which must enable us to build two power units a year from 2011-2012," he added.
To achieve this goal, Rosatom's reserves and resources will have to be used and enterprises of the whole mechanical engineering sector will need to be united, including mechanical engineering plants remaining in former Soviet republics, Kiriyenko said.
An upcoming conversion of the Russian nuclear operator Rosenergoatom into a joint-stock company will make it possible to allocate funds for large-scale construction of nuclear power plants in Russia, he added.
Reserves and funds to implement the task of developing the atomic energy sector should also be obtained through a change in tariffs. Private investment is impossible in this sector, Kiriyenko said.
"The development of the atomic energy sector is an issue of the country's security," he added.
"Rosenergoatom should be paid more for storing spent nuclear fuel," Kiriyenko said in a separate RIA report on 1 February. Speaking about the threshold of the payment, he said that it depends on what price people are prepared to pay for such services.
"The problem is that clear and open methods of pricing relating to spent nuclear fuel need to be worked out. It is necessary to strive to set world prices as regards the fuel.
Rosatom and the Krasnoyarsk Territory leadership have signed an agreement under which 25 per cent of profits earned in 2006 by the mining and chemical combine in Zheleznogorsk for enriching spent nuclear fuel is to be transferred for the needs of local environmental and social programmes, Kiriyenko said.
Speaking about the status of the closed administrative and territorial entity of Zheleznogorsk, he said that there are no plans to change this status. It is an issue of the country's security, Kiriyenko said.
Sources: RIA news agency, Moscow, in Russian 0712 gmt, 1729 gmt 1 Feb 06
Source: BBC Monitoring Former Soviet Union
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