Reactor storage facility opens this week
The first part of a long-term storage facility for nuclear reactors from scrapped submarines from the Northern fleet would be put into service on July 18. The storage facility, located in the Saida Bay west of Murmansk, is built on German money as part of the Global Partnership nuclear security programme.
This first stage of the reactor storage facility will be able to accommodate 30 reactor compartments from decommissioned submarines. When the final stage of the storage facility is completed sometime by the year 2008 it should be able to receive 120 reactor compartments and likely also solid radioactive waste from the nuclear service ships of the Russian Northern fleet.
The first construction stone at the huge concrete-pad storage was laid on the 10th of July two years ago.
"The disposal program is proceeding well," said Andrei Malyshev, deputy head of the Federal Agency for Nuclear Power, interviewed by RIA-Novosti. "As of the second quarter 2006, we had scrapped 137 nuclear submarines. The disposal of another 22 is under way and we are planning to scrap 38 more in the future.
Norway has funded the decommissioning of four retired multi-purpose submarines of the Viktor-class. The United States is the biggest contributor to the submarines decommissioning programme, but also United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Italy and South Korea have contributed with funding and technical assistance.
The Global Partnership Program started in 2003 after being signed at a summit of leaders from the Group of Eight industrialized nations. Nuclear safety is also on the agenda when the G8-leaders meet in St. Petersburg this weekend. The disposal program costs an overall $2 billion, with Russia having allocated $850 million as of 2005.
Germany has allocated a total of 300 million euro (over $382 million) for the construction of the on-shore storage facilities for submarine reactors in Saida bay.
Until now, reactor compartments from decommissioned submarines have been towed from the naval yards where the decommissioning has taken place to the Saida bay where they have been floating at sea. The new storage pads on-shore will keep the reactor compartments for a period of at least 50-60 years before they can be cut into metal pieces and disposed as solid radioactive waste.
Russia does not have any final disposal sites for radioactive waste.
Image source: MoD, Ships Support Agency
The first construction stone at the huge concrete-pad storage was laid on the 10th of July two years ago.
"The disposal program is proceeding well," said Andrei Malyshev, deputy head of the Federal Agency for Nuclear Power, interviewed by RIA-Novosti. "As of the second quarter 2006, we had scrapped 137 nuclear submarines. The disposal of another 22 is under way and we are planning to scrap 38 more in the future.
Norway has funded the decommissioning of four retired multi-purpose submarines of the Viktor-class. The United States is the biggest contributor to the submarines decommissioning programme, but also United Kingdom, Canada, Japan, Italy and South Korea have contributed with funding and technical assistance.
The Global Partnership Program started in 2003 after being signed at a summit of leaders from the Group of Eight industrialized nations. Nuclear safety is also on the agenda when the G8-leaders meet in St. Petersburg this weekend. The disposal program costs an overall $2 billion, with Russia having allocated $850 million as of 2005.
Germany has allocated a total of 300 million euro (over $382 million) for the construction of the on-shore storage facilities for submarine reactors in Saida bay.
Until now, reactor compartments from decommissioned submarines have been towed from the naval yards where the decommissioning has taken place to the Saida bay where they have been floating at sea. The new storage pads on-shore will keep the reactor compartments for a period of at least 50-60 years before they can be cut into metal pieces and disposed as solid radioactive waste.
Russia does not have any final disposal sites for radioactive waste.
Image source: MoD, Ships Support Agency
Post a comment
