– ROSATOM’s success in the international nuclear build market is conditioned by the fact that we offer our partners the cutting-edge technologies of Generation III+. They take account of all safety requirements, including those pertaining to the so-called post-Fukushima category. In other words, the requirements that formed in the world community after the incident at Fukushima-Daiichi NPP when the world thought again about whether or not the modern nuclear power plants were safe. The new safety requirements assume that the plant includes both active and passive elements at the same time. The active ones are the elements, which are controlled by operators, while the passive elements are those, which are started to be used when most unfavorable circumstances build up. For example, even when all power and water supply systems of the plant fail for a long time, the plant independently is able to terminate the nuclear fission reaction, remove residual heat and, naturally, prevent any radioactive releases. The state-of-the-art Russian NPPs are fitted with all these safety elements.
Our second great advantage is that ROSATOM doesn’t build anything abroad, without building it at home first. Therefore, a number of our rivals are vulnerable, since the general public in different countries often reproaches them for a wish to “experiment”: the companies offer to build a plant in a country without building such a plant in their countries.
As I said, today ROSATOM is building 9 reactors in Russia and we build them exactly to the same technologies as we offer abroad. Since these reactors are at different stages of construction, any customer can come and see the entire construction technology of a nuclear power plant from the foundation pit through the reactor start-up ceremony.
One more important factor is that Russia possesses all nuclear power-related technologies and thus can offer an integrated solution. ROSATOM envelopes companies that mine uranium, enrich it, fabricate nuclear fuel, manufacture plant equipment, build plants, and operate them. We always can offer any customer the entire set of technological solutions, the whole chain.
Besides, Russia offers not only safe and integrated technological solutions for building nuclear power plants but also assists in financing. We have a bunch of options: we provide an interstate loan as in Belarus, or act as investors or co-investors as in Turkey, or recently, in Finland.
– Now, there is the active construction phase at Belarus plant. Do the Belarus specialists have an opportunity to control Belarus plant-designated equipment quality and manufacture process at Russian companies?
– The Belarus specialists not just have such opportunity, it is their must. That’s because the customer – Belarus nuclear power plant – has the right not only finally accept the equipment or works done immediately on the construction site, but to trace the process of making the parts to be used in the equipment, starting from fabrication of metal of special steel and alloys. I re-emphasize, this is not a right; it is the direct responsibility of the Belarus specialists to control both quality and safety. Gosatomnadzor of Belarus also supervises over construction of Belarus NPP. Therefore, nothing works as a black box: everything is open and above board and under control.
– What are other nuclear cooperation projects of Russia and Belarus, besides the nuclear power plant?
– Currently, we negotiate building a center with a research reactor with the Belarus colleagues. The center would be capable of solving both scientific and applied problems in the promising areas, such as nuclear medicine, material modification and many others. We hope these negotiations will finish successfully and we will have a possibility to build not only the first nuclear power plant but also such research center in Belarus.
– Over a long time Russia and Ukraine have been tied up by the close nuclear interaction. What is your assessment of further prospects of the cooperation between the two countries in this industry?
– Nuclear power in Ukraine is truly a serious topic. The nuclear reactors in Ukraine produce nearly half of all electricity in that country. In spite of all shades, Russia and ROSATOM have fulfilled all obligations before the Ukrainian colleagues in good faith. We continue supplying fuel for the operating nuclear power plants and take away spent nuclear fuel. The work on the project to build a nuclear fuel fabrication plant in Ukraine is also under way.
We hope that soon we will be able to come back to the actual dialogue with the Ukrainian colleagues on their vision of the nuclear power development prospects in that country. I am certain Russia will always be playing a worthy role in these projects.