Russian Nuclear Deals: News

"The US-Russian HEU-LEU deal, also known as the “Megatons to Megawatts” program, envisages supplying low enriched fuel obtained from high-enriched weapon-grade uranium by Rosatom companies to the United States. The process is as follows. HEU components are machined into shavings, which are then heated and put through several stages of processing before being diluted and transferred into containers. This is what Russian uranium exported to the US actually looks like. It currently generates 10 percent of America’s electricity," Oleg Dvoinikov said.

The construction of a factory in the US to process uranium using Russian technologies is another step to deepen cooperation and cement Russia’s nuclear industry dominance, Oleg Dvoinikov pointed out.

"Russian technologies are more advanced and energy-saving as compared to US diffusion methods. America is seeking Russian technologies, as its centrifuge program has ground to a halt," Oleg Dvoinikov explained.

I dont think lack of weapon grade fissile material was ever a concern
from Russian side , atleast I never heard about it. On the contrary it
was the abundance of it accumulated over years of arms reduction treaty
which was cause for concern , so they had to downgrade the enrichment
and sell it to some one more in commercial sense.

GarryB wrote:Well lets just say I am sceptical of a country that constantly chants that the world is safer when nuclear warhead numbers are reduced... as they are in START treaties, yet on the sly stores the withdrawn warheads rather than gets rid of them.

The Russians could certainly create a lot of nuclear material in a very short period of time if it follows through with its plans to start making fast breeder reactors

Regarding the stability of START... the main problem from the Russian perspective is that it does not include UK and French nuclear weapons and I think any attempt to start introducing other nuclear armed countries will lead to endless negotiations and dysfunctional agreements.

The next focus of the US will likely be tactical nukes... but of course the huge irony there is that US tactical nukes in Europe are really strategic as they will be used directly against Russia, whereas Russian tactical nukes are only likely to be used in an IRBM type substitute role against NATO and China.

If START is undone it is most likely to be undone by an ABM system in Europe... likely with a republican government in power in the US with that dick head McCain in charge. Talk about a guy stuck in the cold war.

To be fair , I think START is like a BIG BOYS agreement between two
Nuclear superpowers , thats suppose to reduce the risk between them and
not between them and ROW.

I am quite surprised they could not find or develop any weapon more powerful and much smaller then TN weapons in past 60 years.

START is a bilateral agreement and not multilateral meant to reduce risk
between Nuclear Superpowers , I believe both Russian ( 4000-5000) and
US(2000-3000) have non strategic nuclear weapons that can take care of
threats from ROW and it is unaccounted so figures can just warry.

hence they have put their money on developing advanced delivery vehical
like new heavy ICBM and new RV and Weapons design for 2011-2020.

I think the current concession on ABM by Obama is just a tactical
retreat till such times their economy stands on its feet in the next
couple of year and prepare a ground for Republican President for high
pitch effort for ABM expansion.

Russia needs to guard and like its Foreign minister Larov says , they
need to see whats being done on ground then just believe on US words

I am quite surprised they could not find or develop any weapon more powerful and much smaller then TN weapons in past 60 years.

Russia, China Ink Deal to Build 2 New Nuclear Reactors

MOSCOW, December 6 (RIA Novosti) – Russia will build two new reactors at China’s Tianwan nuclear power plant under an inter-governmental agreement signed on Thursday.
The bilateral protocol on the construction of Tainwan’s third and fourth reactors was signed in the presence of Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev and his Chinese counterpart Wen Jiabao.
Construction work will begin in December this year, Rosatom civilian nuclear power corporation head Sergei Kiriyenko said.
“At the end of 2012, the first concrete will be poured for the foundation of the third and fourth reactors,” Kiriyenko said, adding the nuclear power station’s site could accommodate as many as eight reactors.
The Tianwan NPP is the largest facility the two countries have built under a bilateral cooperation agreement. Its first stage includes two power units with VVER-1000 reactors and was put into commercial operation in 2007.
Atomstroyexport and the Jiangsu nuclear power corporation signed a general contract to build the NPP in 1997. The Russian company was charged with design work, equipment and material supplies, construction and assembly work, putting it into operation and training Chinese personnel.


http://en.rian.ru/business/20121206/177957721.html

This can be the mother of all Indo-Russian joint projects and collaborations and this also explains why Russian President Vladimir Putin paid a stand-alone visit to India on December 24, albeit only for 15 hours.

India and Russia agreed to an ambitious roadmap for deepening their cooperation in civilian nuclear energy and construct together 16 to 18 nuclear energy plants in India of 1000 MW each. At today’s prices, the latest nuclear energy roadmap, whose broad contours are yet to be shaped up, could be worth a whopping $45 billion, sources told RIR.

Kudankulam nuclear plants Unit 1 and 2 have cost India slightly above one billion dollars apiece. For the third and fourth units, the Russians have already conveyed to the Indians that the prices would double in the wake of Indian government invoking new nuclear liability regime. Therefore, the proposed “16 to 18” nuclear power plants would be costing about $ 2.5 billion apiece and hence the figure of $45 billion, considering one takes the figure of 18 proposed plants.

The Nuclear Roadmap

It is not yet clear whether the proposed roadmap is for 2020 or 2025 or 2030. Most likely, the roadmap would be targeting the deadline of the year 2030. But even if it is 2030 it would mean one new joint Indo-Russian nuclear plant every year for the next 18 years. This is apart from Kudankulam Units 3 and 4.

From Indian point of view, the 22 total Indo-Russian nuclear plants, inclusive of the four Kudankulam units, would yield 22,000 MW of power to the Indian energy basket or 20 percent of the current total power production in India with the help of Russia alone.

From the Russian point of view, the moral of the story is even more encouraging. It means that the Kudankulam worries are no longer plaguing the Indo-Russian relations and the two sides have decided to embark on a far more meaningful, productive and ambitious partnership in the decades to come. It also suggests that Kudankulam 3 and 4 are the scripts that would eventually be written and it is a question of when, not if, this will be done.

Nuclear Energy on the Record

The joint statement released at the end of Putin’s visit gives a good measure of how India and Russia are poised to deepen and intensify their cooperation in the nuclear energy sector. Consider the following quote from the statement: “The sides reviewed the progress in bilateral cooperation in the development of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes and reiterated their commitment to implementing the Agreement between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Russian Federation on cooperation in the construction of additional nuclear power plant units at Kudankulam site as well as in the construction of Russian designed nuclear power plants at new sites in the Republic of India, concluded on December 5, 2008; the agreement between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Russian Federation on Cooperation in the Use of Atomic Energy for Peaceful Purposes and the Road Map for the Serial Construction of the Russian designed Nuclear Power Plants in the Republic of India, concluded on March 12, 2010.” (Emphasis added)

The two principals noted their satisfaction with regard to the progress in commissioning of the first unit of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP) and agreed to take the necessary steps to expedite the completion and commissioning of the second unit. The two sides have already signed the protocol for the grant of State Credit from Russia to India for works, supplies and services for construction of Units 3 and 4 at Kudankulam and related fuel supplies. Putin and Singh agreed to conclude expeditiously the negotiations on the techno-commercial offer for the construction of Units 3 & 4.

The two sides also reiterated their commitment to incorporating the best technology in construction of nuclear power plants with a view to ensuring and maintaining the highest safety standards. India and Russia have already held the first meeting of the Joint Working Group between Department of Atomic Energy and State Corporation Rosatom in the field of peaceful uses of nuclear energy held in Moscow in July 2012 and Putin and Singh welcomed this outcome.

A point emphasised by the joint statement relates to the complementarities between India and Russia in the energy sector as a major buyer and supplier of hydrocarbons. At today’s summit the two leaders reviewed the ongoing efforts to establish joint cooperation ventures between Indian and Russian companies and reaffirmed their intention to continue the implementation of the Inter-Governmental Agreement on cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector signed on December 21, 2010.

The highly productive talks on the long-term nuclear energy cooperation roadmap is perhaps the most important take-away for both sides and a high watermark for Putin’s successful India visit.

The writer is a New Delhi-based journalist-author and strategic analyst.

Finland has invited "Rosatom" to begin negotiations on a nuclear power plant


Finland proposed "Rosatom" to begin direct negotiations concerning the supply of reactors for nuclear power plants in the north of Finland, which is engaged in the construction company Fennovoima. This is stated in the official press release Fennovoima.

In February, the Finnish company said that during 2013 is going to choose a supplier for nuclear power plants and evaluates proposals from the "Rosatom", as well as France's Areva and Japan's Toshiba.

In turn, in the "Rosatom" confirmed the agency "Interfax" that commence negotiations with the Finnish colleagues. The company noted that the high level of Russian technology is well known in Finland because of the NPP "Loviisa". This plant is equipped with two Russian VVER-440.

The fact that "Rosatom" can return to the nuclear market in Finland, the newspaper "Kommersant" wrote in late February. The basic condition for the participation of Russian companies in the bid for the Finnish nuclear power plants in the publication called reducing power required for the reactor plant from 1.6 gigawatts (which at the "Rosatom" none) to 1-1.3 gigawatts. Maximum capacity of VVER reactors is about 1.2 gigawatts.

Construction of the new Finnish nuclear power plant Hanhikivi 1 is expected to begin in 2015, and completed its plan to introduce in 2020. The total project cost is estimated at 4.6 billion euros.


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Russia is among the bidders for the construction of another nuclear power plant in Turkey


Turkey expects to have 3-4 candidates for the construction of two successive nuclear power plants, one of which is sure to be a Russian, said the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Taner Yildiz.

ANTALYA, April 20 - RIA Novosti, Alain Palazhchenko. Turkey expects to have 3-4 candidates for the construction of two successive nuclear power plants, one of which is sure to be Russia, RIA Novosti said the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Minister Taner Yildiz.

Earlier, the Ministry of Energy of Turkey stated that it is about to launch two nuclear power plants by 2023, the third at this time should be under construction. The construction of Turkey's first nuclear power plant (project Akkuyu) is a Russian company Rosatom.

"We are waiting for the end of the negotiations on the second nuclear power plant in Sinop, with Japan and China. Hope to complete them within a month, after which we will re-evaluate the results of these negotiations and, as I said, Vladimir Putin, weigh and discuss," - said the Minister after 12th meeting of the Joint Intergovernmental Russian-Turkish Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation, which was held in Antalya on Saturday.

Taner Yildiz said that Russia will necessarily participate in the tender for the construction of a third nuclear power plant, the location of which is not yet determined.

"About a third nuclear power plant - of course, Russia sure there will be. But by 2023, we are not going to run it, but only build. We will need another two years to conduct the necessary geological surveys. I think we will have 3-4 alternatives, through which we will take a decision on the contractor ", - said the head of the Turkish Energy Minister.



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Egypt Invites Russia to Join NPP, Uranium Mining Projects



SOCHI, April 19 (RIA Novosti) - Egypt has invited Russia to join a project to build a nuclear power plant (NPP) in the country and to develop Egyptian uranium deposits, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Friday.

The Egyptian delegation “has come up with a proposal for [Russian state nuclear energy corporation] Rosatom to send a delegation to resume cooperation on Egypt’s peaceful atom development program and on the construction of nuclear power generation facilities,” Novak said.
The Russian minister said Egypt plans to build a nuclear power plant with a capacity of four gigawatt before 2025.
Egypt also invited Russia to jointly develop its uranium deposits, the minister said.

Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said that Egypt, which has been seeking a $4.8 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), has also requested a loan from Russia. He did not disclose the sum, saying only that it was “pretty significant.”
“A loan issue was broached. The financial authorities will enter into contact. The chiefs of financial structures were instructed to discuss [the issue],” he told journalists.

The proposals were made during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting with his Egyptian counterpart Mohammed Morsi in Sochi on Friday.

Speaking after the talks, Putin said the sides have agreed to diversify trade and economic relations.
“We have agreed to seek to diversify trade and economic ties, to pay more attention to investment cooperation,” the Russian president said, adding that joint projects in agriculture, industry and energy could accelerate potential growth.

The two states have increased their trade turnover by almost 70 percent in the past two years, with bilateral trade growing to $3.5 billion in 2012. Russia exports grain, wood, vehicles, equipment and ferrous metals to Egypt, and imports fruit and vegetables.
Egypt also remains the third most popular holiday destination for Russians, after Turkey and China. About 2.5 million Russians visited the country last year, up 39 percent from 2011.


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China Offers Russia Floating Nuke Plant Joint Project





MOSCOW, April 23 (RIA Novosti) – China has proposed that Russia join forces with it to build and operate floating nuclear power plants, the head of Rusatom Overseas, part of Russia’s civilian nuclear power corporation Rosatom, said on Tuesday.


“It was proposed that a joint venture should be established with investments from both sides [Russia and China] to create a fleet [of floating nuclear power plants] and subsequently operate it,” Rusatom Overseas CEO Dzhomart Aliyev said.


“The joint venture is the idea that the Chinese side proposed to us. …From the viewpoint of business, this is a good idea,” Aliyev said, adding that the proposal had been put forward on Monday.


In August 2011, Rosatom announced the establishment of Rusatom Overseas to implement nuclear power plant construction projects and promote Russian nuclear technologies abroad. Rusatom Overseas has an equity capital of 1 billion rubles ($33 million).


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On March 26, Mr. Kirill Komarov, Deputy Director General of ROSATOM for Development and International Business, held a presentation “Nuclear as a factor of social and economical development” at the 4th BRICS Business Forum, which took place parallel to the 5th BRICS Summit in Durban, South Africa.

According to Komarov, Fukushima accident, despite the expectations, had not dramatically affected the positive trend for global development of nuclear power, and the consensus forecast showed that by 2030 installed NPP capacity would reach roughly 590 GW, which represented a decrease of 11% in comparison to 'pre-Fukushima' forecasts. Furthermore, most countries are continuing to keep their political will towards developing national nuclear power programs. He cited Russia as an example, where the national construction program had been fully preserved, and ROSATOM even managed to double its portfolio of nuclear plant projects abroad. Today ROSATOM’s portfolio of foreign orders exceeds 70 billion USD, and the company is implementing projects to construct 28 NPP units, including 9 units in Russia and 19 abroad.

He pointed out, that nuclear energy is not only an effective and clean source of energy itself, but it also stimulates the national industrial development, particularly giving a powerful impulse for the development of construction and engineering industries, as well as encourages the creation of many new jobs. Komarov also added that nuclear energy acts as a driver for the development of a country’s scientific and technological capacities, education, and many other fields.

Talking about BRICS and African countries, Komarov noted, that due to a number of crisis events in the Western world economy, as well as certain slowdowns in Asia’s economy growth, only BRICS and Africa could be considered as the points with significant economy growth potential.

“But Africa, being a continent suffering from electricity deficit, won’t be able to bring all its potential into life without meeting energy needs for its growing economy. It is vital for African countries to create viable energy mix, which will guarantee their own energy security and drive the industrial development. That is the reason why more and more African countries are currently studying the opportunities for nuclear power development, and their intentions must be supported by the global community”, Komarov said.

He also emphasized that almost all of African countries as well as many other nations are newcomers in nuclear power, and in this regard countries with developed nuclear technologies should transfer the required technologies and knowledge, and solutions to construct new NPPs must be offered on an integrated basis, with unconditional priority being given to safety. “We are certain that nowadays a responsible vendor of nuclear technology shall be able to provide an integrated solution for emerging countries, and such an offer, apart from generation 3+ NPP construction itself, can and shall include the elements like assistance in development of national legislative and regulatory basis, personnel education and training, nuclear fuel cycle and radwaste management solutions, attraction of local industry capabilities, as well as financing support options”, Komarov stated. According to his words, such an approach would allow a newcomer country to fully meet its demands related to the development of nuclear power in full compliance with international requirements.

The speaker also stressed, that ROSATOM is a responsible vendor, which is actively cooperating with African countries in nuclear energy domain.

“We already have our own history of successful cooperation with Africa in this sphere. Last year, we’ve signed an intergovernmental agreement with Nigeria on cooperation in NPP construction. We have been working in Namibia and Tanzania in terms of uranium exploration and mining. With the Republic of South Africa our cooperation is the most lasting – starting from enriched uranium supplies for Koeberg NPP – up to a number of other cooperation spheres which we have on the agenda today”, Komarov told.

He added that ROSATOM’s activities in Africa are based on a strong principle – the projects must not only be mutually beneficial for the both sides, but also shall contribute to the development of local socio-economic sectors, ensuring creation of jobs, infrastructure development, and investments attraction. As an example he cited Mkuju River uranium mining project in Tanzania. ROSATOM entered the project in 2011 and since then the company has been contributing significantly to the local infrastructure development planning to create around 5000 jobs.

In the concluding part of his report, Komarov stressed the importance of BRICS as the world leader in the nuclear new-build. According to the report, in BRICS countries 74 power units are currently being operated, 45 are being under construction, and 130 units are planned for construction.

“We believe that BRICS may and should indeed play a leading role in promoting nuclear power technologies to African countries. From our side, ROSATOM is ready and willing to take an active part in this important process”, summarized Komarov.

Russia to spend over $30 billion in nuclear energy development


Russia will expend one trillion rubles ($31.3 billion) to develop its nuclear power industry through to 2015. Russia’s next-generation nuclear power plants will have an improved safety design, as well as an improved water desalination system.

“Nuclear security and nuclear power production safety should be upgraded with the aid of new technological solutions,” the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s department for security and disarmament Mikhail Ulyanov, said on Wednesdayas, as quoted by Itar-Tass.

A new generation of Russian nuclear power plants will include such safety features as double reactor containment, passive heat removal systems, and specialized cooling units, he said.

According to Ulyanov, Russia has started designing the reactors that not only generate electric power, but also desalinate water. Plants with such reactors may potentially become “instruments of development for many countries,” the official believes.

Ulyanov’s comments came amid discussions on nuclear nonproliferation, and in connection with Geneva Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) talks, in which Russia is participating.

The next major review of the 1970 Treaty is scheduled for 2015, with preparatory session now taking place. The NPT treaty has been signed by 190 countries.


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Moscow, Hanoi to go ahead with building NPP in Vietnam - Vietnamese PM

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