Rosatom is moving to the construction of low-power nuclear power plants for the Arctic and Far East using a conveyor belt method. The general director of the state corporation, Alexey Likhachev, spoke about this at the Eastern Economic Forum. According to him, to the Akademik Lomonosov floating nuclear power plant already operating in Pevek, four more will soon be added, which will provide electricity to the operation of the Baimsky Mining and Processing Plant.
In Yakutia, construction of an onshore small nuclear power plant begins for the development of the Kyuchus gold deposit. For gold mining in Chukotka, the design of the Shelf-M micro-nuclear power plant with a capacity of 10 MW is being completed
– said Alexey Likhachev.
According to him, the total need in the Arctic and Far East for floating nuclear power plants alone over the next 10-15 years will be 15 units. At the same time, the head of the state corporation emphasized that this number is not the limit.
Industrial and technological Rosatom's potential makes it possible to produce a larger number of small nuclear power units that can operate not only in the Russian Federation, but also abroad. In this area, the Russian corporation is a world leader, which dramatically increases its competitiveness in the global market
– Likhachev noted.
The General Director of Rosatom said that interest in low-power nuclear power plants is now growing in Asia and Africa. In addition, small-scale nuclear power is in great demand in states with underdeveloped energy infrastructure, as well as in island territories.