April Closure Set for Russian Plutonium Reactor

Russia plans to close two Siberian nuclear reactors beginning next month, Interfax reported.  Shutting down the two reactors has been a major U.S. nonproliferation goal because the facilities produce large quantities of weapon-grade plutonium while they generate heat and power for nearby communities (see GSN, Feb. 4).

The ADE-4 reactor would be shut down in April and its sister site, ADE-5, would be closed in June, said Nikolai Sharov, the facilities’ chief power engineer.

“The reactors will be stopped in line with Russian-American intergovernmental agreements on stopping the production of weapon-grade plutonium and setting up compensatory facilities,” he said.

The United States is helping to fund the construction of coal-fired power plants to replace the energy supplied by the nuclear reactors.  The first of these plants is scheduled to come into service before the next Siberian winter arrives, Sharov said (Interfax, March 19).

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