10.05.2007 // RIA Novosti

Why does Russia need Atomenergoprom?

The state holding “Atomenergoprom,” set up by a recent decree of President Vladimir Putin, is the result of the last two years’ reforms in the Russian nuclear power industry – a technological base that will help Russia to fulfill its nuclear energy development plans. When drafting the project, the Federal Agency for Nuclear Energy (Rosatom) realized that the reforms would not be possible without state support. That’s why the first step of the reformers was the Federal Target Program of Nuclear Energy Development 2006, which was approved by the Parliament and ratified by the President.

The recent decree of the President – on the formation of Atomenergoprom – has given real shape to the new structure. Now Rosatom is doing its best to give this body “flesh and blood”: the agency is drafting the charter of the new holding, creating a list of the assets that will form its capital. The deputy head of Rosatom Vladimir Travin says that in May-June the Government will determine the formation procedure with the whole process to be finished by 2008.

Atomenergoprom will embrace all peaceful nuclear programs and all civil nuclear companies. It will be a 100% state-owned company. At the initial stage, the holding will be given the government shares of almost 30 companies, such as TVEL, Techsnabexport, Atomenergomash; and later the shares of 55 more companies. The vertical structure of Atomenergoprom will bring together the logical links of the nuclear production chain: from uranium extraction and enrichment to nuclear fuel production and NPP construction.

This idea is not new — there already are similar giants in the world: Areva-Siemens, General Electric-Hitachi, Westinghouse-Toshiba. Those transnational holdings are very strong and efficient. And Atomenergoprom will become their rival (and, perhaps, partner). Experts say that the Russian holding has a big competitive advantage: it covers the whole technological cycle – from extraction of raw materials to generation of electricity.

The internal monopolistic structure of Atomenergoprom has a number of serious advantages: lower inter-cooperative costs, common management system, flexible pricing. The chairman of the Sub-Committee on Nuclear Energy of the State Duma Committee on Energy, Transport and Communication Viktor Opekunov is sure that the holding is a new page in the history of nuclear power engineering in Russia. This is a real step to revive the industry, to place numerous companies under unified management system and to carry out large-scale projects.

We would like to remind what specific projects the holding is supposed to help to carry out: 26 new nuclear power units in the coming 12 years, intensive NPP construction abroad, active uranium extraction and enrichment, prospecting of new deposits, development of science, modernization and construction of power equipment enterprises.

Does the sector have necessary human resources for implementing such a huge project? In the last 15 years, while people have been recovering from social-political collapse and getting used to liberal and market values, many industries have lost personnel continuity traditions. “But we must not lose heart, what we must do is mobilize all our strengths,” says Opekunov. Presently, the Government is actively financing the sector: a total of 1.5trl RUR will be spent on the development of the nuclear power industry by 2015. Such a solid material base will allow us to actively recruit and train people.

Atomenergoprom will comprise three big training centers in Moscow, St.Petersburg, and Obninsk. Besides, the industry actively cooperates with such well-known educational institutions as Moscow Engineering and Physics Institute, Ural Polytechnic Institute, Tomsk State University. “Of course, this is a very hard task. We may face a lot of difficulties and may even be forced to revise our plans. But the development vector will move only upwards (after all, we don’t live for one day only, do we!?)” says Opekunov.

Will this reform change the functions of Rosatom? The industry will remain solid, but will be based on two gigantic complexes: nuclear weapons and nuclear energy. The former complex is a monopoly solving state tasks, the latter – Atomenergoprom – a commercial company competing on the global market of nuclear technologies. Rosatom will link those two complexes.

Tatiana Sinitsyna