Russia, US ink agreement on reactor conversion By Jim Heintz

MOSCOW—Russia and the U.S. signed an agreement Tuesday on conducting feasibility studies for converting Russian research nuclear reactors to using low-enriched uranium.

Sergei Kiriyenko, the head of Russia's nuclear agency Rosatom, and U.S. deputy energy secretary Daniel Poneman signed the document.

Some research reactors in the United States already have been converted, part of a nonproliferation initiative to reduce the presence of uranium enriched to a sufficiently high concentration to be used in nuclear weapons.

A text of the agreement was not immediately available after the signing ceremony.

"As a general principle, we believe the right thing to do is to take highly enriched uranium where available and convert research reactors using that to low-enriched uranium, as a global matter that is a safer and more proliferation-resistant way to go," Poneman told reporters.

"It's fitting and proper that both Russia and the United States should be full participants in that process," he said.

Poneman said U.S.-Russian cooperation on such issues demonstrates the increasingly globalized nature of nuclear energy.

A Rosatom subsidiary last month bought 51 percent of the shares in Uranium One, a Canadian company whose holdings include uranium mines in the United States.

Responding to media commentary that the deal indicated the U.S. was losing control of strategic components, Poneman said: "I would say it reflects a misunderstanding of the fundamental nature of the international nuclear fuel cycle. Over a number of decades a very elaborate and complex multilayered fuel cycle has developed around the world."

http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2010/12/07/russia_us_ink_agreement_on_reactor_conversion/

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UN watchdog approves nuclear fuel bank

http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/UN_atomic_watchdog_approves_nuclear_fuel_bank_999.html Vienna (AFP) Dec 3, 2010 The UN atomic watchdog on Friday voted to set up a nuclear fuel bank, under its auspices, to allow countries access to nuclear energy without risking the spread of atomic weapons. The International Atomic Energy Agency's 35-member governing board approved a United States-sponsored proposal for a 150-million-dollar (112-million-euro) fuel bank, with 28 countries in favour.
No country voted against the resolution, but six developing countries -- Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, South Africa, Tunisia and Venezuela -- abstained.
One country's delegation, Pakistan, chose to be absent when the vote was held in a gesture showing it was disassociating itself from the project.
The resolution was based on an original proposal by former IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei, but which ran into stiff resistance last year.
Developing nations saw it as a way for the existing western nuclear powers to curtail other countres' right to acquire and develop nuclear technology of their own for peaceful purposes.
The resolution stipulated that only countries whose supplies were halted for political reasons and which had a clean non-proliferation record would access to the bank.
But such conditions were rejected by Pakistan, one of only a handful of nations which refuse to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
"We are thus obliged to disassociate ourselves from such specific elements of the draft resolution," said Pakistan's ambassador Khurshid Anwar. Accordingly, the Pakistan delegation was absent when the vote was held.
Among those countries in favour, the EU said such a fuel reserve "can bring benefits for energy security and for non-proliferation, without distorting the existing well-functioning market."
Possessing the uranium-enriching technology used to produce fuel for nuclear power plants is a major proliferation concern because it can also be used to manufacture the fissile material for an atomic bomb.
The proponents of the fuel bank believe that such a mechanism will mean that the increasing number of nations interested in using nuclear power to meet their growing energy needs can still do so without having to possess the sensitive uranium-enrichment technology.
Earlier this week, Russia already announced that it had created the world's first such fuel bank in Angarsk.
The Rosatom state atomic energy corporation said the Siberian fuel reserve would have enough material to refuel two civilian nuclear power plants. It too will also operate under the auspices of the IAEA.

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UN atomic watchdog approves nuclear fuel bank

http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/UN_atomic_watchdog_approves_nuclear_fuel_bank_999.html Vienna (AFP) Dec 3, 2010 The UN atomic watchdog on Friday voted to set up a nuclear fuel bank, under its auspices, to allow countries access to nuclear energy without risking the spread of atomic weapons. The International Atomic Energy Agency's 35-member governing board approved a United States-sponsored proposal for a 150-million-dollar (112-million-euro) fuel bank, with 28 countries in favour.
No country voted against the resolution, but six developing countries -- Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, South Africa, Tunisia and Venezuela

-- abstained.
One country's delegation, Pakistan, chose to be absent when the vote was held in a gesture showing it was disassociating itself from the project.
The resolution was based on an original proposal by former IAEA chief Mohamed ElBaradei, but which ran into stiff resistance last year.
Developing nations saw it as a way for the existing western nuclear powers to curtail other countres' right to acquire and develop nuclear technology of their own for peaceful purposes.
The resolution stipulated that only countries whose supplies were halted for political reasons and which had a clean non-proliferation record would access to the bank.
But such conditions were rejected by Pakistan, one of only a handful of nations which refuse to sign the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
"We are thus obliged to disassociate ourselves from such specific elements of the draft resolution," said Pakistan's ambassador Khurshid Anwar. Accordingly, the Pakistan delegation was absent when the vote was held.
Among those countries in favour, the EU said such a fuel reserve "can bring benefits for energy security and for non-proliferation, without distorting the existing well-functioning market."
Possessing the uranium-enriching technology used to produce fuel for nuclear power plants is a major proliferation concern because it can also be used to manufacture the fissile material for an atomic bomb.
The proponents of the fuel bank believe that such a mechanism will mean that the increasing number of nations interested in using nuclear power to meet their growing energy needs can still do so without having to possess the sensitive uranium-enrichment technology.
Earlier this week, Russia already announced that it had created the world's first such fuel bank in Angarsk.
The Rosatom state atomic energy corporation said the Siberian fuel reserve would have enough material to refuel two civilian nuclear power plants. It too will also operate under the auspices of the IAEA.

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Russia opens world's first nuclear fuel bank

http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=247854211242866212 Moscow (AFP) Dec 1, 2010 Russia announced Wednesday that it had created the world's first international atomic fuel bank as part of a global effort to curb the spread of nuclear arms to nations such as North Korea and Iran. The Rosatom state atomic energy corporation said the Siberian fuel reserve -- which will operate under the auspices of the United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) nuclear watchdog -- will have enough material to refuel two civilian nuclear power plants.
"The purpose of this facility is to reduce the risk of other countries processing their own uranium to a minimum," former Foreign Intelligence Service chief Gennady Yevstafyev told AFP. "This will dramatically improve control over the proliferation of nuclear weapons."
The Angarsk bank is the first of about a dozen facilities proposed by various nations following the 2003 discovery of covert enrichment activity in Iran.
The plant now stores 120 tonnes of low-enriched uranium (LEU) that has been enriched to between two and 4.95 percent. Scientists say it can satisfy the electricity needs of a 12-million-strong city for up to a year.
The fuel is considered safe because the weapons-grade uranium desired by nations seeking to build nuclear weapons must be enriched to at least 90 percent.
The IAEA approved the Russian reserve's creation at a historic but contentious two-day meeting in November.
The type of fuel stored in Angarsk is used by most of today's civilian nuclear power plants. Russia first proposed the idea to the IAEA in September 2007 amid fears here that supply cutoffs could be used by Western nations for political purposes.
"This bank was created under the Russian president's initiative to form a global nuclear energy infrastructure (that would ensure) reliable compliance with the nuclear weapons non-proliferation regime," Rosatom said in a statement.
Then-president Vladimir Putin first forwarded the nuclear fuel bank initiative in January 2006 amid a resumption of nuclear dialogue between Russia and the United States.
Moscow and Washington signed their own peaceful nuclear cooperation deal -- known as the 123 Agreement -- two years later and the two sides then both pushed for the bank's approval at the IAEA.
The idea was backed by 23 of the 35 IAEA members at the Vienna meeting but opposed by countries such as Brazil and Pakistan that are just beginning to establish their own nuclear programmes.
"The main problem with nuclear energy is that countries try to develop their own nuclear fuel cycles," Yevstafyev said in reference to the independent production and enrichment of uranium -- an ability perfected by a limited group of states.
"And this cycle is then turned around and focused on developing nuclear weapons. This plant should help stop that."
The Angarsk announcement comes one week after Russia and the IAEA signed a separate agreement on developing a joint training programme for nuclear experts who could then be employed at the various facilities across Russia.
Officials here have voiced fears that they no longer have the scientists and experts they did in the Soviet era to safely operate the country's vast network of nuclear facilities.

Rosatom Claims Ready to Provide Fuel for Bulgaria's Belene NPP

Image via WikipediaRosatom offers to supply fuel for proposed nuclear plant in Bulgaria
Russia's Rosatom said it is ready to supply uranium throughout the 60-year commission of the proposed Belene nuclear facility in Bulgaria, said CEO Sergey Kiriyenko. Aside from providing the nuclear fuel, Rosatom is also willing to buy the facility's used fuel for recycling, Kiriyenko said.

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Fortum secures contract for Bulgarian nuclear project

http://af.reuters.com/article/energyOilNews/idAFL3E6N10DS20101201
Finland-based Fortum said it has signed a deal to build a nuclear plant in Bulgaria with support from Russia's Rosatom. The proposed Belene nuclear plant will have two Russian-designed VVER reactors. "Fortum has reserved an opportunity to obtain a 1% share of the equity in the project company that will be established and will be the owner of the power plant and the electricity generated by it," the company said. Reuters

Russia's nuclear concern 'out of control': watchdog

http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/Russias_nuclear_concern_out_of_control_watchdog_999.html Moscow (AFP) Nov 26, 2010 Russia's Rosatom state nuclear energy enterprise is out of government control and facing a heightened risk of corruption, Transparency International said in a report released Friday. The corruption watchdog called Rosatom "a state within a state" that conducted rigged auctions and overpaid for contracts that could have been struck at a lower and more competitive price.
"Rosatom, like the other public firms, is a state within a state and cannot be controlled by the the anti-monopoly service or the audit court," said Elena Panfilova, head of Transparency International Russia.
The group said it analysed 200 orders made by Rosatom for construction materials, and Panfilova said that firms often complained they were not allowed to take part in Rosatom tenders.
"Rosatom only allows chosen firms to take part in its offers, which are made at high prices in violation of its own norms," added deputy head of Transparency in Russia Ivan Ninenko.
Led by former prime minister Viktor Kiriyenko, Rosatom succeeded the Soviet Union's Ministry of Nuclear Energy and Industry in 1992. It was transformed into a state corporation in 2004.
Rosatom also controls nuclear weapons companies and oversees the country's construction of the first nuclear power plant in Iran.

Russia, Qatar Sign Memorandum Of Cooperation On Peaceful Nuclear Use

Qatar, which has the third largest natural gas reserves in the world, behind Russia and Iran, moved to develop peaceful nuclear energy in cooperation with other Arab countries in 2006, which was supported by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

http://www.nuclearpowerdaily.com/reports/Russia_Qatar_Sign_Memorandum_Of_Cooperation_On_Peaceful_Nuclear_Use_999.html Moscow (RIA Novosti) Nov 08, 2010 Russia and Qatar signed on Tuesday a memorandum of cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy. The document was signed in Moscow by Nikolai Spasski, the deputy director of the Russian state-run nuclear corporation Rosatom, and the Qatari ambassador to Russia, Ahmed Saif Al-Midhadi. The two countries agreed to cooperate in the development of Qatari laws regulating the use of nuclear energy, scientific research, as well as in the construction of nuclear reactors.
The signing of the agreement comes as Moscow is preparing for a three-day visit by Qatari Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani due to begin later in the day.
After the signing ceremony, Spasski said the memorandum contained a "roadmap for further moves" in the two countries' nuclear cooperation and is to be followed by an intergovernmental agreement on the issue.
Russia and Qatar already have active energy contracts, including through OPEC and the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF).

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Russia, Qatar to cooperate in nuclear field

Russia in nuclear deal with Qatar
Russia's state-run Rosatom and Qatar's Ministry for the Environment have entered into an agreement covering the use of nuclear energy for various areas, including medicine, radioisotope production and research reactors. Voice of Russiahttp://english.ruvr.ru/2010/11/02/31082429.html

Qatar and Russia sign up for nuclear cooperation from World Nuclear News by Warwick Pipe

http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/IT-Qatar_and_Russia_sign_up_for_nuclear_cooperation-0211107.htmlRussia's Rosatom and Qatar's Ministry of Environment have signed a memorandum of cooperation on the peaceful use of atomic energy. The memorandum covers bilateral cooperation in areas such as the development of nuclear energy legislation in Qatar. According to Rosatom, the two parties will also work together on fundamental and applied research, design, construction and operation of nuclear power and research reactors, including the production of radioisotopes and their use in industry, medicine and agriculture. The agreement will also see Russia supply unspecified nuclear materials and nuclear fuel cycle services as well as undertaking education, training and professional development for nuclear power industry personnel in Qatar. Qatar is one of the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council which has been looking into the use of nuclear energy for power and desalination in the region since 2006. A study into the viability of nuclear power led the state to conclude in 2008 that the case was not sufficiently strong to go ahead with a program of its own, but it subsequently raised the possibility of a regional nuclear generation project.

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Russia joins list of countries keen to supply nuclear plants to SA

Russia’s State atomic energy corporation, Rosatom, is providing South Africa’s Department of Energy with briefings on the latest generation of Russian nuclear power plants. The first such briefing took place in August, in Moscow, and the second should occur in Pretoria, probably before the end of this year.
The intention is that the second briefing will take place after the finalisation of South Africa’s Integrated Resource Plan 2010 (IRP 2010), which was issued in draft form earlier this month. Although the period for comment on the IRP2010 is likely to be extended, government still wants it to be finalised before the end of the year.
The IRP2010 identifies the country’s power generation options for the next 20 years. One of these is nuclear, and Russia wants to be one of the bidders for South Africa’s next nuclear power plant.
The Russian nuclear industry learned a great deal from the Chernobyl catastrophe in the Ukraine in the then Soviet Union, in 1986. As a result, modern Russian nuclear power reactors have multiple protection systems.
Since then, the Russians have focused their attention, like France and the US, on pressurised water reactors (PWRs) – abbreviated as VVER in Russian. According to the US Energy Information Administration, an American government agency, today’s VVER designs “conform to international standards”.
Russia is offering South Africa the latest generation of its VVER-1000 reactor in the AES-91/99 nuclear power plant design. (The Russians have separate designations for reactors and for the nuclear power plants). In 2003, the AES-91/99 design (including the reactor) was certified as complying with European Union standards by Finnish experts. The AES-91/99 uses the latest version – V-466 – of the VVER-1000 reactor (VVER-1000/466 for short). But other options are available. More at:


http://www.pimagazine-asia.com/index.php?page=shownews&news=2828

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TVEL in Ukraine Venture

TVEL, Rosatom’s nuclear fuel monopoly, agreed Wednesday to form a joint venture with Ukraine to build a uranium-processing plant there.
The plant will have capacity to process 400 metric tons of uranium a year and may start operating in 2013, according to a statement distributed by the Russian government at the signing ceremony in Kiev.
Ukraine will hold 50 percent plus one share, according to the statement, and the plant will produce fuel for Ukraine’s VVER-1000 reactors. TVEL agreed to transfer nuclear fuel technology to the Ukraine venture by 2020, the statement said. A site is not yet selected.
http://www.themoscowtimes.com/business/article/tvel-in-ukraine-venture/421285.html

Russia, IAEA to step up cooperation

Russia is ready to boost cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency in ensuring security at nuclear facilities, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said on Monday.
The number of countries operating nuclear plants will grow to about 30 by 2030, which raises concerns over nuclear energy security, Putin said during a meeting with IAEA head Yukiya Amano in Moscow.
Russia, which has constantly cooperated with the IAEA, especially in developing innovative nuclear reactors, is ready to continue joint work with the agency, Putin said.
"IAEA experts give the highest evaluations to security at our nuclear facilities," he added.
The prime minister praised the appointment of Alexander Bychkov, Russia's representative at the IAEA, as the organization's deputy director general heading the Department of Atomic Energy. Another Russian national, Yury Sokolov, was the department's head before Bychkov took office in September.
During his stay in Russia, Amano met with Sergei Kiriyenko, the head of Russia's state-run nuclear corporation Rosatom and is expected to meet with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on Tuesday.
MOSCOW, October 25 (RIA Novosti)

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http://en.rian.ru/russia/20101025/161082518.html

Russia, Ukraine, Slovakia sign nuclear fuel transit deal

Russia, Ukraine, Slovakia sign deal on fuel shipments
The governments of Russia, Ukraine and Slovakia have signed a deal to ease the transportation of nuclear fuel through Ukraine, according to Russia's Rosatom. The agreement would also ensure that Slovakian nuclear plants would receive continuous supplies of the material from Russia. RIA Novosti (Russia)http://en.rian.ru/world/20101021/161043820.html

Obama Sowing Doubt About Venezuela's Nuclear Reactor Plans, Chavez Says

U.S. is trying to unsettle Venezuela's nuclear plans, Chavez says
President Barack Obama seeks to "sow doubt" on Venezuela's intention to build its first nuclear plant, said President Hugo Chavez. This statement comes after Obama said Tuesday that he won't oppose Venezuela's plan to develop nuclear energy as long as it is used for peaceful purposes. Venezuela signed a deal with Russia's Rosatom to develop a nuclear plant, which could take 10 years. Bloomberghttp://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-10-21/obama-sowing-doubt-about-venezuela-s-nuclear-reactor-plans-chavez-says.html

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Russia Is Seeking to Build Europe’s Nuclear Plants

Rosatom to bid for Czech project, aims to expand EU market share
Russia's Rosatom, the world's largest builder of nuclear plants, is planning to expand its presence in the EU. The company is preparing a bid on its second EU project -- an expansion of the Temelin nuclear plant in the Czech Republic. Aside from expanding its reactor-construction business in Europe, Rosatom aims to boost its position in the worldwide fuel market from 17% now to 25% by 2025. The New York Times (free registration)

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Russia to Begin Tianwan Nuclear Power Reactors Construction Next Year

Russia will begin construction of two addtional reactors at the Tianwan nuclear power plant in China next year, the head of the Rosatom state-controlled nuclear corporation said.
Russia's nuclear power equipment and service export monopoly Atomstroyexport and its Chinese partner, the Jiangsu nuclear power corporation, signed a framework agreement this March on construction of two VVER-1000 reactors with a power output of 1000MW.
"The work must begin next year," Rosatom head Sergei Kiriyenko said.
The first two VVER-1000 reactors at the Tianwan nuclear power plant were started in 2007.
Atomstroyexport and the Jiangsu nuclear power corporation signed a general contract to build the plant, the largest project in Russian-Chinese economic cooperation, in 1997. The Russian company was charged with design work, equipment and material supplies, construction and assembly work, as well as training Chinese personnel.
Russia and China agreed that Moscow would receive $1.8 billion to build the second stage of the Tianwan nuclear power plant.http://nuclearstreet.com/nuclear_power_industry_news/b/nuclear_power_news/archive/2010/09/27/Russia-to-Begin-Tianwan-Nuclear-Power-Reactors-Construction-Next-Year-092703.aspx

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Russia to begin 2nd stage of Tianwan nuclear power plant construction next year

Russia to build 2 VVER-1000 reactors at Tianwan plant in China
Russia's Atomstroyexport will begin construction next year of two VVER-1000 reactors at Jiangsu Nuclear Power's Tianwan plant in China, according to Sergei Kiriyenko, head of Russia's state-controlled Rosatom. Russia is expected to secure about $1.75 billion for the Tianwan expansion project. RIA Novosti (Russia)http://en.rian.ru/business/20100927/160731550.html

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Russia Proposes Fast-breeder Reactor Cooperation Program

Russia proposes setting up an international cooperation program on the development and use of fast-breeder research reactors, the head of the Rosatom state-controlled nuclear corporation said on Monday.
"I would like to propose that the states concerned launch an international program of multilateral cooperation in the research and development of fast-breeder reactors," Sergei Kiriyenko said, adding it should also include research into safety procedures.
Russia is ready to consider using a multifunctional fast-breeder research reactor, which should be built by 2017, for broad cooperation, both on a multilateral and bilateral basis.
More on Russia's investment in a Fast-breeder Reactor Program

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Further cooperation for China and Russia

Further cooperation for China and Russia

02 September 2010

 
Cooperation between China and Russia is to expand to cover floating nuclear power plants.

The news came in an announcement of the results of the annual meeting of the country's state nuclear companies. Head of Rosatom Sergei Kiriyenko travelled to Beijing for the meeting that he co-chaired with Chen Quifa, chair of the China Atomic Energy Authority.