09.01.2007 // Government.ru

The Russian Government has summed up the key results of the activities of the Federal Nuclear Power Agency in 2006

In 2006 the Agency worked out a federal target program «Development of the Nuclear Power Industry of Russia in 2007–2010 and till 2015.»

The construction of the 4th BN-800 unit of Beloyarsk NPP has been intensified: 1bln RUR was spent on the project in 2006. The 2nd unit of Volgodon NPP is under construction: the steam generators are ready, the vessel has been installed. The construction of the 4th unit of Kalinin NPP is underway. The first floating NPP with KLT-40C ice-breaker-type reactor is being built at Sevmash company (Arkhangelsk region). Afrikanov OKBM (Experimental Design Bureau) is producing the reactor’s module components. Rosenergoatom has made contracts for the whole project cycle worth 9bln RUR. The floating NPP will produce electricity for Sevmash and the town of Severodvinsk. Besides, Rosenergoatom is considering the possibility of building floating NPPs for supplying energy to remote northern territories (Pevek, Viluchinsk, Yamal).

Atomstrojeksport’s victory in the tender for the construction of Belene NPP (Bulgaria) was the first victory of the Russian nuclear power engineers in Europe since the Soviet times. In 2006 the Government restored its control over Aromstrojeksport. This fact was decisive in the Bulgarian tender and has substantially raised the company’s competitiveness.

On Dec 7 2006 Russian-Kazakh Zarechnoye JV started extracting uranium at a capacity of 1,000 tons a year. This is Russia’s first uranium extraction project abroad. The second Russian-Kazakh JV (relevant contract was signed on Oct 12) will enrich Kazakh uranium at a special facility at Angara Electrolysis Chemical Factory (Irkutsk). In fact, this is the first JV set up in the framework of the international center for uranium enrichment — a project suggested by President Putin. Such centers are a good guarantee that the countries wishing to develop their nuclear power sectors will get fuel for their NPPs without setting up nuclear enterprises applying double purpose technologies. The International Center project was approved by IAEA Director General Mohamed El Baradei during the 50th IAEA general conference held in Vienna in Sept 2006. The third Russian-Kazakh JV is «Nuclear Power Plants» JV, a project aimed at designing and promoting innovative projects of small and medium reactors on the markets of Kazakhstan, Russia and third countries. The JV is supposed to design a new-type VBER-300 reactor (to be made by Afrikanov OKBM) for future NPPs in Kazakhstan.

2006 was quite successful for TVEL: the Corporation won the international tender for  supplying fuel to Temelin NPP (Czech Republic) in 2010–2020 (its rival was Westinghouse, who fueled the plant in 2000–2006); got a license to  supply fuel to Kozloduy NPP (Bulgaria) till 2020; agreed with Ukraine on new fuel price formation methods. From now on the price will depend on the price tendencies on the world’s nuclear service and material markets. This will allow TVEL to earn additional $2bln in the coming years.

In 2006 the Russian authorities solved the problem of the village of Muslumovo: the problem of the Techa reservoir cascade polluted by a military nuclear project in the Soviet-times. In Oct 2006 the Russian Government allocated 600mln RUR from Rosatom’s additional incomes for the elimination of the social-ecological consequences of the activities of Mayak, a production association near the village of Muslumovo. The money will be spent on the resettlement of Muslumovo residents — a total of 741 households. Each householder will get either 1mln RUR and will be able to buy a house anywhere he wishes or (if he is reluctant to leave his native lands) will be settled in the new «clean» village in Kunashak district or the apartment house in the town of Kunashak, Chelyabinsk region. Each house in Muslumovo will be bought from its householder for 1mln RUR and will be destroyed. In 2007–2008 the Chelyabinsk Government will allocate 450mln RUR for the project. An information-consulting center was opened in Muslumovo in early Oct to provide local residents with legal advice and to register ownership rights (according to «one stop» principle). On Oct 30 the first four householders filed documents for receiving 1mln RUR.

Atomenergomash (100% state-owned company) has set up a number of JVs jointly with plant owners and has thereby restored its control over ZiO-Podolsk (monopolist producer of steam generators, circulation pumps, quick boron injection systems), Izhorsk Plants (the only producer of reactor vessels), OMZ-SpecialSteel (producer of special steel for reactor vessels).

Russia has joined the Generation IV international forum. It was an important step for integrating into the international project to produce reactors of the 4th generation. The federal target program for the nuclear power complex development provides for the design of an experimental SVBR-75/100, a fast heavy liquid-metal coolant reactor. Generation IV is also developing this technology in cooperation with the US, Japan and South Korea.
 
The Russian Government has approved a federal target program ITER and has allocated 1bln RUR as Russia’s share in the international project to design the first ever nuclear fusion reactor. Representatives of the countries involved in the project signed a relevant agreement in Paris on Nov 21.