Russian Inter RAO UES reluctant to continue management of Armenian Nuclear Power Plant: newspaper
25.11.2011,
00:42
Russian state-owned Inter RAO UES company is displeased with the terms of running Armenia’s nuclear power plant in Metsamor and will seek an early termination of the contract, an influential Russian business newspaper Kommersant said today.
YEREVAN, November 24. / ARKA /. Russian state-owned Inter RAO UES company is displeased with the terms of running Armenia’s nuclear power plant in Metsamor and will seek an early termination of the contract, an influential Russian business newspaper Kommersant said today. According to it, the only alternative to Inter RAO UES is another Russian government-owned corporation Rosatom which, however, is interested in building a new unit for the Armenian nuclear power plant rather than in taking up its management.
The daily quotes a source close to Inter RAO UES as saying that the company is negotiating with Armenian authorities revision of the terms of running Metsamor plant. He says that Inter RAO UES is not specialized in running nuclear energy facilities ‘with increasing risks.’ The daily says officials in Inter RAO UES declined comments. Asked by ARKA news agency to comment on the Kommersant report Armenian ministry of energy and natural resources promised to do so a little later.
The Armenian Metsamor nuclear power plant is located some 30 kilometers west of Yerevan. It was built in the 1970s but was closed following a devastating earthquake in 1988. One of its two VVER 440-V230 light-water reactors was reactivated in 1995. Armenian authorities say they will build a new nuclear power plant to replace the aging facility. The new plant is supposed to operate at twice the capacity of the Soviet-constructed facility. Metsamor currently generates some 40 percent of Armenia's electricity. But the government has yet to attract funding for the project that was estimated by a U.S.-funded feasibility study to cost at as much as $5 billion. Under a 2003 agreement Armenian nuclear power plant's financial flows are managed by Russian Inter RAO UES. The agreement expires in 2013.
According to the source, Inter RAO UES and Rosatom have started talks on a possible transfer of Metsamor’s management, but it is not clear whether they would cut a deal. The source says Rosatom is not interested in running Metsamor plant being focused on a project to build a new unit for the plant by 2017. Rosatom is also the supplier of nuclear fuel to the Armenian NPP.
According to Ekaterina Tripoten of BKS, Inter RAO UES can cite a string of motivations to give up management of the Armenian NPPP, like lack of competence to manage nuclear facilities, or the desire to focus on the heat generation in other former Soviet republics. Tripoten also says Inter RAO UES may be dissatisfied with little profit from running Metsamor plant.
According to Andrei Cherkasenko from Atompromresursi, foreign companies may take interest in running the Armenian nuclear power plant if its authorities announce a tender. However, he adds, given that Armenia receives fuel from Russia and a e joint project to build a new unit for Metsamor, the control over the Armenian nuclear power plant may be passed to Rosatom or a national operator, but Armenia does not have such a company.
The newspaper also says that sizeable portion of Armenian major infrastructure one way or another is controlled by Russia. Thus, Russian Railways control Armenian railroads. Inter RAO owns the national power distributor Electric Networks of Armenia and the Hrazdan thermal power plant. In March it sold 90% in International Energy Corporation, which owns seven hydroelectric power plants (Sevan-Hrazdan cascade) to Russian RusHydro. -0-
The daily quotes a source close to Inter RAO UES as saying that the company is negotiating with Armenian authorities revision of the terms of running Metsamor plant. He says that Inter RAO UES is not specialized in running nuclear energy facilities ‘with increasing risks.’ The daily says officials in Inter RAO UES declined comments. Asked by ARKA news agency to comment on the Kommersant report Armenian ministry of energy and natural resources promised to do so a little later.
The Armenian Metsamor nuclear power plant is located some 30 kilometers west of Yerevan. It was built in the 1970s but was closed following a devastating earthquake in 1988. One of its two VVER 440-V230 light-water reactors was reactivated in 1995. Armenian authorities say they will build a new nuclear power plant to replace the aging facility. The new plant is supposed to operate at twice the capacity of the Soviet-constructed facility. Metsamor currently generates some 40 percent of Armenia's electricity. But the government has yet to attract funding for the project that was estimated by a U.S.-funded feasibility study to cost at as much as $5 billion. Under a 2003 agreement Armenian nuclear power plant's financial flows are managed by Russian Inter RAO UES. The agreement expires in 2013.
According to the source, Inter RAO UES and Rosatom have started talks on a possible transfer of Metsamor’s management, but it is not clear whether they would cut a deal. The source says Rosatom is not interested in running Metsamor plant being focused on a project to build a new unit for the plant by 2017. Rosatom is also the supplier of nuclear fuel to the Armenian NPP.
According to Ekaterina Tripoten of BKS, Inter RAO UES can cite a string of motivations to give up management of the Armenian NPPP, like lack of competence to manage nuclear facilities, or the desire to focus on the heat generation in other former Soviet republics. Tripoten also says Inter RAO UES may be dissatisfied with little profit from running Metsamor plant.
According to Andrei Cherkasenko from Atompromresursi, foreign companies may take interest in running the Armenian nuclear power plant if its authorities announce a tender. However, he adds, given that Armenia receives fuel from Russia and a e joint project to build a new unit for Metsamor, the control over the Armenian nuclear power plant may be passed to Rosatom or a national operator, but Armenia does not have such a company.
The newspaper also says that sizeable portion of Armenian major infrastructure one way or another is controlled by Russia. Thus, Russian Railways control Armenian railroads. Inter RAO owns the national power distributor Electric Networks of Armenia and the Hrazdan thermal power plant. In March it sold 90% in International Energy Corporation, which owns seven hydroelectric power plants (Sevan-Hrazdan cascade) to Russian RusHydro. -0-
