Valentin Mezhevich, first vice chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Natural Monopolies

– Russia is following the global trend for development of nuclear energy

On May 21 Governor of Tomsk region Viktor Kress has given his consent to the allocation of two units of Seversk Nuclear Power Plant in the territory of the region.

The Government of Italy is planning to start the construction of nuclear power plants, reports AFP with reference to Economic Development Minister of Italy Claudio Scajola. This marks the end of 22 years of boycott of nuclear energy in Italy. Bloomberg reports that the first project will be started within the next five years. Scajola says that NPPs will allow Italy to produce cheap electricity without polluting the environment.

Presently, Russia has adopted a large-scale program to develop its nuclear energy complex and is planning to build 20 nuclear reactors by 2020: not only substituting capacities (reactors replacing existing ones) but also projects in the territories that have had no NPPs so far – first of all, Tomsk and Kaliningrad regions. The latter may face a dire energy crisis in 2009 as its neighbor Lithuania is planning to shut down its Ignalina NPP, the key source of energy for Kaliningrad. Presently, both projects are undergoing preparatory procedures.

Such a quick start of our program is not a whim. We are following the global trend. Europe and, especially, the United States, China, Japan and Korea are actively developing their nuclear energy sectors and are doing it even more actively than we. For example, China is planning to build 140 nuclear reactors, the United States – over 100 reactors, Japan is planning to increase the share of NPPs in its total energy production from present 30% to 40%. Quite recently, the United Kingdom and Italy announced plans to develop nuclear energy. The Economic Development Minister of Italy has said that in the next five years his country will start to build new NPPs.

It is quite symbolical that the lifting of the 22-year moratorium on nuclear energy in Italy was announced by the ministry of economic development. After ignoring nuclear energy for over two decades Italy has realized that its further economic growth will be impossible without technologies producing cheap and safe energy. Besides, all the G8 states seek to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. This means that in the very near future G8 will begin to restructure its fuel basket. So, after the statement of Scajola we have got a complex picture of Europe’s plans in the nuclear power sector: all the G8 states either have NPPs or will have them in the very near future. G8 is changing its attitude towards the peaceful use of nuclear energy. This means that nuclear energy is becoming a key priority for the world’s leading countries in the face of the growing oil and gas prices.