 To return to the main
reactor page, see the Kazakhstan: Reactors Overview
file.
Aktau (formerly Shevchenko), Mangystau
Oblast (see the Kazakhstan
facilities map for details.)
Kazakhstan State Corporation for Atomic Power and
Industry (KATEP)
Director:
Vladimir A. Ivanov
Technical Director: Petr Nazarenko
The reactor served two purposes: to breed plutonium
and to operate as a source of electricity, district heating, and water
desalinization for the city of Aktau.[1] The BN-350 reactor was the
only power reactor in the world used for industrial scale-desalinization
(up to 100,000 t/d).[2,3] The BN-350 reactor was permanently shut down on 22 April
1999.[4]
First connected to the grid on 16 July 1973, the operating life of the
reactor was originally 20 years, to end in 1993. However,
Kazakhstani Atomic Energy authorities approved
extension
of the reactor’s operations until 2003, with more
comprehensive inspections and equipment upgrades.[5,6,7] See
the Foreign Assistance: DOE section of
the NIS Databases for more information about the BN-350
Reactor Shutdown Project. (Please see the MAEK
Photo Gallery.)
BN-350 liquid metal fast breeder reactor (LMFBR), sodium coolant.
Design capacity 250 MWe; average thermal capacity 592 MW.[1] Average electrical
capacity 135 MWe.[2]
Designed to use uranium fuel enriched to 20-25 percent,
as well as MOX fuel (23.19 percent Pu).[1] Approximately 10 fuel assemblies
and 100 fuel elements of MOX fuel were loaded into the reactor in the 1990s.[2]
Other sources indicate some experiments were done with fuel containing
up to 30 percent plutonium. The BN-350 was capable of generating over 110
kg of plutonium each year.[3] Fuel burn-up was increased from 6.3 percent
to 10 percent, with plans to increase it to 11.8 percent.[4] Historically,
MAEK received fresh fuel supplies exclusively from the Machine
Building Plant (MSZ) in Elektrostal, outside Moscow, Russia.[5]
The electricity generated by the reactor made
up 0.7% of Kazakhstan’s total output in 1997.[1] A third
of the reactor's energy output was used to desalinate water.[2] The total production of this reactor in 1993 was
444,000 MWh and 17.2 billion kg of desalinated water. In 1994, the reactor produced
378,000 MWh, or 0.58 percent of Kazakhstan's total electricity output.[3]
MAEK participates in the US
Department of Energy MPC&A Program. MPC&A collaboration began
in September 1995, and initial projects were completed by September 1998.
Physical protection upgrades included a central alarm station, personnel
and vehicle portal monitoring systems, exterior lighting and cameras, surveillance
and intrusion sensors inside the BN-350 reactor building, and improved
communications for site and MVD security forces. Upgraded material
accounting systems included computer workstations, accounting software,
and an unattended radiation monitoring system.[1] Kazakhstani officials are concerned about their ability to maintain and
obtain spare parts for newly installed MPC&A equipment, and have also
remarked that facility specialists need more training on nonproliferation
issues.[2] Follow-on activities, including periodic visits by technical
experts, will be required to maintain the installed systems until Kazakhstan
develops a rigorous national regulatory system. The BN-350 reactor is under
IAEA safeguards pursuant to the Safeguards
Agreement concluded between Kazakhstan and the IAEA in 1995.
In accordance with the IAEA's Criteria, the BN-350 facility is at present
inspected once per month for timeliness verification and once per year
for a physical inventory verification.[3] For more information on past MPC&A
activities
at MAEK,
please see DOE's September 1998 document,
Partnership
for Nuclear Security: United States/ Former Soviet Union Program of Cooperation
on Nuclear Material Protection, Control, and Accounting.[1]
MAEK was a part of the Soviet Union's nuclear
complex and used to return irradiated assemblies to Russia's Mayak
Production Association (PO Mayak) in Chelyabinsk Oblast for reprocessing
after cooling in the BN-350 pool. After the collapse of the Soviet
Union in 1991, spent fuel shipments to Russia stopped. Some of the
fuel assemblies irradiated over the 25 years of operation remain in the
reactor facility's cooling pool.[1] According to
the US Department of Energy, three tons of weapons-grade plutonium is contained in approximately 300MT of spent fuel at
the site.[2] Argonne
National Laboratories designed, fabricated, and installed a machine
in mid-1998 to stabilize and package the fuel for long-term storage in
steel containers.[3]
To fabricate steel storage containers, Argonne partnered with Byelkamit,
a CTR joint venture between
Byelocorp Scientific International (BSI), Inc., of Rochester, NY,
and Gidromash, a Kazakhstani torpedo-manufacturing plant.[3,4] By
mid-1999, the plant was manufacturing large steel canisters, each designed to
hold six assemblies.[3,5] "Hot" and "cool" spent fuel assemblies were packaged together in the
canisters and returned to storage
ponds, making the cool spent fuel less vulnerable to diversion.[5,6] (Please
click the link to see a photograph of the packaged
canisters.) The
packaging of spent fuel was completed in June 2001. The DOE Spent Fuel Initiative calls for removal of the filled canisters
for long-term storage to one of 10 sites under
consideration, including sites in Mangystau Oblast, central Kazakhstan, and
at the Semipalatinsk Test Site.[7]
(Click here to view the NIS Nuclear
Profiles criteria for reporting reactor developments.) 5/2003: PLUTONIUM FROM
MAEK TO
BE MOVED TO SEMIPALATINSK
For more information, see the 5/2003 entry
in the Kazakhstan: Radioactive Waste and Spent Fuel
file. 4/30/2003:
MAEK SOLD FOR $0.7 MILLION
On 30 April 2003
Kazatomprom purchased MAEK for 112 million tenge, or
$740,000, at a Dutch-style auction. The initial starting price for the plant was over 6 billion tenge
($40 million as of 30 April 2003). The auction was set to be based on the English method, then
shifted to the Dutch method if the first method did not produce results.[1]
Kazatomprom
management plans an extensive overhaul of MAEK facilities,
budgeting over 1.5 billion tenge ($10 million as of 30 April 2003) for repairs. The president of Kazatomprom, Mukhtar Dzhakishev, also
noted there were plans to raise worker salaries, and provide bonuses for exceptional work. Funds for this wage
increase will not be raised by increasing power costs to customers, but instead
by using savings from lower overhead costs.[2]
2/11/2003: IAEA TO CONSIDER PLAN TO MOTHBALL BN-350 REACTOR
On 11 February 2003, Interfax reported that, according to Kazakhstani
National Nuclear Center Deputy Director Irina Tazhibayeva,
Kazakhstan will submit a plan
to mothball the BN-350 reactor to the
International Atomic Energy Agency
(IAEA) in March 2003. The IAEA will consider the plan within 2-3 months
of submission and
provide recommendations to Kazakhstan regarding the final decision. Tazhibayeva noted
that after its approval, the plan will be presented to a conference of
donor-states to attract funding. This aid will supplement the material and technical
assistance already provided by the United States, Japan, and the European Union's Technical
Assistance to the CIS program. (For more information, see
Kazakhstan:Foreign Assistance Overview.) As of February 2003, $40 million has been spent on the project. The estimated
total cost of the project is $300 million.
1/16/2003: MAEK DECLARED BANKRUPT
According to Interfax, on 16 January 2003 the Mangystau Oblast court declared
MAEK bankrupt. The court ordered the dissolution of MAEK, the termination of
restructuring procedures at the facility, and initiation of proceedings for the
facility's sale.[1] The court ruling was the result of a government decree issued
at the end of 2002, instructing the Ministry of Finance to start legal actions
for declaring the enterprise bankrupt and selling MAEK property to a new
investor.[1,2]
According to the government decree, the new owner must ensure integrated
production engineering,
a regular supply of electricity,
heat and water to the region, and maintenance of the BN-350 reactor to
sustain
radiation safety. The decree also limits potential owners to
legal entities holding a license for operating nuclear facilities with at
least five years of experience in Kazakhstan's nuclear industry.[3] Those
requirements are met by just three enterprises in Kazakhstan: the
State Corporation for Atomic Power and
Industry (KATEP), National Nuclear Center, and
Kazatomprom. Kazatomprom is the most
likely candidate for ownership of the MAEK property, according to government sources.[4]
Restructuring procedures at MAEK began in February 1999. Although deadlines were extended several
times, the final deadline was set for February 2003.[1,2] According to
the Kazakhstani Finance Ministry's Tax Committee, by 23 December 2002 (the date when the above
government decree was issued) only about 700 million tenge (about $4.5 million
as of January 2003) of the enterprise's pre-restructuring
budget debt of approximately 3.3 billion tenge (about $21.3 million) had been
paid off. The Tax Committee alleges that the debtor did not implement a
rehabilitation plan and thus continued to harm the national interests of
Kazakhstan.[1]
4/10/2002: MAEK NUCLEAR REACTOR
TO BE MOTHBALLED BY JUNE 2003
According to Petr Nazarenko, MAEK's
technical director, Kazakhstan plans to remove all radioactive sodium coolant
from its BN-350 reactor by June 2003, after which the reactor will be
mothballed. As of April 2002, about 1,000 tons
of radioactive sodium was circulating in the reactor. Approximately $2 million
per year is required to maintain the reactor, according to Nazarenko.
12/12/2001: DOE, KAZAKHSTAN CONSIDER
LONG-TERM STORAGE OPTIONS
According to Douglas Newton, project manager of the Kazakhstan Breeder
Reactor Closure Project, the US Department of Energy and Department of State are still working with the Kazakhstani
government on several long-term storage options for BN-350's ivory-grade
plutonium. This is in spite of announcements from Kazakhstani officials of
their intention to store the plutonium in northeastern Kazakhstan. Some
experts believe that the best place for Aktau's plutonium is Russia. For more
information, please see the 8/29/2000 entry, below.
10/19/2001: BN-350 IN FINAL STAGE OF
DECOMMISSIONING
According to Vladimir Karaulov, director of
the BN-350
Fast Breeder Reactor, the reactor is in the final stage of decommissioning.
The radioactive sodium coolant will be decontaminated of
cesium in 2002 and drained in
2003. The coolant will be converted to caustic soda by 2006.
After this process is complete, the reactor will be mothballed for 50 years.
At
that time decisions about final dismantlement of the reactor
site will be made.
7/12/2001: SPENT FUEL AT MAEK REMOVED AND
PACKAGED
On 12 July 2001 MAEK hosted a ceremony marking the completion of
the packaging of spent fuel at the BN-350 nuclear reactor
in Aktau. The ceremony was attended by representatives of the
National
Nuclear Center of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the International Atomic
Energy Agency, US national laboratories, and the US Embassy in
Kazakhstan. During the two-and-a-half year packaging process, 3,000 spent fuel assemblies were stabilized and packaged into 478
canisters and then placed into a cooling pond with an IAEA seal. The cost of
unloading and packaging the spent fuel amounted to $40 million.
6/6/2001: LONG-TERM STORAGE OF SPENT NUCLEAR FUEL WILL COST
$20-40 MILLION
Shamil Tukhvatulin, director of the
National Nuclear
Center of Kazakhstan, announced that the total cost for long-term
storage
of spent nuclear fuel from the BN-350 fast breeder reactor will amount to $20-40 million. According
to Tukhvatulin,
the spent fuel will be transported to the former
Semipalatinsk Test Site
for long-term storage.
4/9/2001: DOE PROPOSES 40% CUT FOR SPENT
FUEL INITIATIVE
On 9 April 2001 the US Department of Energy released its FY 2002 budget
request, in which $8.9 million was requested for the Spent Fuel
Initiative in Kazakhstan. This is a 40% decrease from the FY 2001
allocation of $15.8 million. The FY 2002 budget request states
that the reduced level reflects the "stretch out of completion,"
presumably referring to delays in selecting a long-term storage site for the
plutonium. For more information, see the developments from 24
November 2000 and 20 December 1999.
11/24/2000: SEMIPALATINSK MOST LIKELY SITE
FOR LONG-TERM STORAGE OF SPENT FUEL
According to a Vremya MN report, containers
of spent fuel from MAEK have been placed under 18 meters of seawater in a
special reservoir for a period of five years while a long-term storage site
is constructed. Inspection teams from the IAEA and the United States
announced that there were no malfunctions in the packaging process and that
the material has been successfully stored at the bottom of the
reservoir. The packaging and storage technology was developed by Los
Alamos National Laboratory.[1] Officials from the Kazakhstani National
Nuclear Center (NNC) told Interfax that a long-term storage facility for
the spent fuel will likely be constructed at the Baykal
complex on the former Semipalatinsk
Test Site.[2]
8/29/2000: RICHARDSON ANNOUNCES PROGRESS
AT MAEK, FUNDING FOR IPP
On 28-29 August 2000, US Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson
held meetings with Kazakhstani President Nazarbayev and Minister
of Energy, Industry, and Trade Shkolnik. Richardson announced
that the joint US-Kazakhstan project
to package weapons-grade plutonium at MAEK is 85% complete, with over 2.5
tons of "ivory grade" plutonium, or 2,800 fuel assemblies, secured.
MAEK contains a total of 3 tons of "ivory grade" plutonium contained in
approximately 300 metric tons of spent fuel. Ivory-grade
plutonium is plutonium with an even lower percentage of undesirable isotopes
than typical weapons-grade plutonium. Upon completion of the
packaging project, anticipated for February 2001, the United States and Kazakhstan
will proceed with plans for long-term storage and disposition of the fuel.
Richardson reported that thus far, the United States has budgeted $3.8 million to
support efforts to safely shut down
the BN-350 reactor as part of a December 1999 US-Kazakhstan
agreement. Richardson also announced that DOE's Initiatives
for Proliferation Prevention project will award up to $4 million to
nine Kazakhstani institutes to create employment opportunities for scientists
with expertise in weapons of mass destruction.
3/14/2000: KAZAKHSTAN'S ARREARS TO IAEA CAUSE IT
TO LOSE VOTE, BN-350 AID
Kazakhstani Minister of Foreign Affairs Yerlan Idrisov
said that Kazakhstan's debt to the IAEA has resulted in the suspension
of IAEA financial support for the BN-350 nuclear reactor decommissioning
project. For more information on this subject, please see the 3/14/00
entry in the International
Organizations: Developments section of
the database.
3/13/2000: US DOE ALLOCATED $15.5 MILLION FOR BN-350
PROJECT IN 2000
According to a 7 February 2000 federal budget request,
the US Department of Energy allocated $15.5 million for FY2000 and
requested $16 million for 2001 for the BN-350 reactor decommissioning project
in Kazakhstan.
2/28/2000: FUEL UNLOADING BEGINS AT BN-350 REACTOR
According to a 28 February 2000 report on Kazakhstan's
Khabar Television, the unloading of the nuclear fuel at the BN-350 nuclear
reactor has begun. KATEP's
Department for Decommissioning is responsible for coordinating this work.
2/4/2000: DECOMMISSIONING SCHEDULE TO BE DEVELOPED
BY SEPTEMBER
According to a 4 February 2000 report, Kazakhstani
Minister of Energy Vladimir Shkolnik
announced that the schedule for decommissioning the BN-350 nuclear reactor
will be developed by September 2000. Shkolnik also mentioned that
an international conference regarding this issue will be conducted in May
2000.
1/24-27/2000: GOTTEMOELLER AND SHKOLNIK DISCUSS SHUTDOWN
OF BN-350 REACTOR
US Assistant Secretary of Energy Rose Gottemoeller met
with Kazakhstani Minister of Energy, Industry, and Trade Vladimir Shkolnik in Astana to discuss US Department of Energy assistance programs
in Kazakhstan. The two parties discussed two ongoing DOE projects in
Kazakhstan: closing and decommissioning the BN-350 reactor in Aktau,
and securing and disposing of spent fuel stored at the Aktau site. Gottemoeller
announced that the United States has provided Kazakhstan with $50 million
in assistance each year since 1993 for nuclear disarmament. On the
decommissioning of the Aktau reactor, Gottemoeller added that the project
will be a lengthy one and will require a total of $85 million. In
response to reporters' questions about the MiG
export scandal, Gottemoeller
noted that Kazakhstan and the United States have signed an agreement whereby
the US will help develop an appropriate automated export control system
for Kazakhstan. The agreement also provides for training of Kazakhstani
export control personnel in the United States and for assistance in amending existing export control laws in
Kazakhstan.[1,2]
12/20/99: US AND KAZAKHSTAN
APPROVED REACTOR DECOMMISSIONING PLAN
US Secretary of Energy William Richardson and Kazakhstani
Minister of Energy Vladimir Shkolnik signed an agreement to close
and decommission the BN-350 reactor in Aktau at the US-Kazakhstani Bilateral
Commission meeting on 20 December 1999 in Washington, DC. Secretary
Richardson announced that a joint US-Kazakhstani expert group will launch
a study of the long-term storage options for spent fuel currently stored
at the site.
6/12/99: MOTHBALLING OF MAEK REACTOR
BEGINS
According to a televised report on 12 June 1999, the first stage of mothballing
of MAEK's power reactor has begun. MAEK physicists and and production
staff will take part in only the first stage of the mothballing process,
which will last five years. According to MAEK Chief Engineer Petr
Nazarenko, nuclear specialists at MAEK will be fully employed until the
reactor is rendered safe, and will then be transferred
to other jobs. According to unnamed specialists, the entire mothballing
process will take 50 years and will be funded by external sources.[1] According
to Nuclear Engineering International, the United States will assist
in the decommissioning work and transfer technology to Kazakh companies,
and the European Union's TACIS program will also provide aid.[2]
4/22/99: BN-350 REACTOR PERMANENTLY SHUT DOWN
Director of the Moscow Center of the World Association of Nuclear Operators
Farit Tukhvetov said that the BN-350 reactor at Aktau was officially shut
down on 22 April 1999. According to Tukhvetov, Kazakhstani authorities decided
that the reactor was too isolated from technical support and design organizations
in Russia.
10/15/98: AKTAU WILL CONTINUE TO RUN AS BREEDER TILL SHUTDOWN
According to a report published on 15 October 1998, Kazakhstani Minister
of Science Vladimir Shkolnik said that the BN-350 reactor at Aktau will
resume operations in November 1998 after a repair outage and will continue
to generate weapons-grade plutonium in its depleted uranium blanket for
several
years. Because the reactor is expected to shut down before 2005,
the cost of converting the reactor's blanket to a non-fertile material
like iron was not considered justifiable. The spent fuel stored in pools
at the reactor site contain between two and three MT of weapons-grade plutonium
produced at the reactor. Kazakhstan continues negotiations with US and
European industry and governments over long-term storage options for spent
fuel from Aktau, and a decision on waste disposition is expected in 1999.
9/14/98: JAPAN SUPPORTS MPC&A WORK AT AKTAU
According to a paper presented at a conference in
Kurchatov on 14 September 1998, Japan has provided technical support for
MPC&A at the BN-350 reactor facility at Aktau. The Japanese firm
PENSCO Co. Ltd, with technical cooperation from the Power Reactor and Nuclear
Development Corporation (PNC), has provided a flow monitoring system (including
a neutron detector, gamma detector, and personal computers) for monitoring
the removal of fuel from the reactor core, along with other equipment for
use in IAEA inspections. PENSCO also supplied software, personal
computers, and local area network hardware for Aktau's material accounting
and control system, including a program for calculating fuel composition
and burn-up. Japan and the United states coordinated their support
for physical protection at Aktau, including provision of identity card
readers, turnstiles, metal detectors, x-ray detectors, and a TV monitoring
system. Similar physical protection support was also provided to the Kazakhstan
Atomic Energy Agency and Kazakhstan's Institute
of Atomic Energy.
9/98: TRANSPORT OF WASTE FROM AKTAU TO BEGIN NOVEMBER
1998
According to Timur Zhantikin, Director of the Kazakhstan
Atomic Energy Agency, more than 3MT of nuclear waste from the BN-350
reactor at Aktau will be transported from the reactor to the burial
site at Semipalatinsk starting in
November 1998. US experts have been closely involved in the waste transport
project, and high-tech storage containers and transport equipment will
be paid for with US funds, according to a November 1998 agreement signed
by the United States and Kazakhstan. The waste, which includes plutonium
and other weapons-usable material, will be moved over a distance of 2,500km,
but the exact route and mode of transportation have not been determined.
8/98: PREPARATORY DECOMMISSIONING WORK BEGINS
AT AKTAU
The Interfax-Kazakhstan news agency reported on 28
August 1998 that work to prepare for the decommissioning of the aging BN-350
reactor at Aktau has begun.[1] More than 3MT of nuclear waste, which
includes plutonium and other weapons-usable material, will begin transport
from the reactor to the burial site at Semipalatinsk in November 1998.[2]
2/98: UNITED STATES PLANS TO SPEND $27 MILLION TO MANAGE BN-350 SPENT
FUEL
The Office of Arms Control and Nonproliferation of the United States Department
of Energy will spend $10 million in FY 1998 (plus $2 million from the State
Department's Nonproliferation and Disarmament Fund), and has asked for
budget authority to spend $15 million in FY 1999, for the containment and
interim storage of spent breeder blanket fuel from the BN-350 reactor at
Aktau. The spent fuel, now stored at the Aktau site, will be transported
to the Semipalatinsk complex for long-term storage under IAEA safeguards.
The blanket fuel management program comes under the agenda of the US-Kazakhstan
Joint Commission set up by US Vice President Albert Gore and Kazakhstani
President Nursultan Nazarbayev. Talks have reportedly been held with
potential vendors of casks for spent fuel storage, including the German
firms GNB, GNS, and Nukem, though GNB's potential role in the project was
linked to pending commitments by the German government to provide additional
financing. Kazakhstani Minister of Science Vladimir Shkolnik said
that the infrastructure for spent fuel storage at Semipalatinsk would cost
an estimated $20 million.
7/97: NONDESTRUCTIVE ASSAY ENHANCES MPC&A AT AKTAU
The United States Department of Energy (DOE) has provided nondestructive
assay techniques and systems to upgrade material protection, control, and
accounting (MPC&A) at the BN-350 fast breeder reactor at Aktau. The
Aktau plant has received approximately 75 percent of a monitoring system
designed to sense radiation from and track the movement of nuclear material.
Complete insallation and comprehensive follow-up will be required to fully
optimize the system. The BN-350 reactor has received gamma-ray measurement
systems, and staff have received initial training on these systems. The
design for a neutron assay system for spent fuel from BN-350 is underway
at Los Alamos National Laboratory and should be installed by summer 1998.
The new systems require calibration materials, which will be provided by
New Brunswick Laboratory after Kazakhstani regulatory approval.
1/22/97: MAZHILIS APPROVE DRAFT LAW ON USE OF NUCLEAR ENERGY
The Mazhilis (lower chamber of the Kazakhstani parliament) approved the
draft law On the Use of Atomic Energy. The draft law, presented by Kazakhstani
Minister of Science and President of the Academy of Sciences Vladimir Shkolnik
stipulates the responsibilities of state bodies in the use of nuclear energy,
provisions for the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons, and regulations
for the storage and processing of nuclear waste. The draft allows for any
form of private ownership of nuclear power generating facilities and proposes
to conduct state regulation of the use of nuclear energy by introducing
a licensing system; this last proposal caused parliamentary debates. Some
deputies felt that abolishing the former state monopoly over nuclear energy
facilities and transferring them to private ownership will endanger their
safety.
8/96: LOAD FACTORS OF THE AKTAU REACTOR THROUGH MARCH 1996
The average load factor of the BN-350 FBR in Aktau for electricity generation
over a 12-month period until the end of 3/96 was 4.1 percent. The lifetime
load factor from the first grid connection (7/16/73) to the end of 3/96
was 23.7 percent. In 1995, the BN-350 provided 800,000 MWh of electricity,
equivalent to a nuclear share of 0.13 percent with an average load factor
of 20 percent.
6/25/96: INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON NUCLEAR ENERGY IN KAZAKHSTAN,
NUCLEAR REACTOR PLANS DETAILED
An international conference was held in Aktau concerning the development
of nuclear energy in Kazakhstan. The organizational committee of the conference
in Aktau was headed by Kazakhstani Minister of Science and President of
the Academy of Sciences Vladimir Shkolnik, and President of Russia's Kurchatov
Institute Yevgeniy Velikhov. The Kazakhstani government invited representatives
of large international manufacturers of nuclear reactors, hoping to attract
them to bid on the construction of a new nuclear plant in Kazakhstan. Kazakhstani
officials expect the US firm General Atomics, along with companies from
Canada and France, to be the leading contenders in the contract bidding
process. In addition to the plan to build a nuclear reactor at the former
Semipalatinsk military site, the government is considering constructing
a two-unit plant in Southern Kazakhstan by the year 2010 and replacing
the aging BN-350 FBR in Aktau with a Russian BNM-170 modular fast reactor
by the year 2005. In addition, projects for nuclear heat plants are being
considered for Western Kazakhstan and the cities of Karaganda, Petropavlovsk,
and Leninsk. A Russian-design VVER-640 reactor is one option for a future
reactor. However, local experts have expressed interest in a Canadian CANDU
reactor (Canadian-Deuterium Uranium heavy water reactor) because
of its safety standards as well as its use of unenriched uranium. Total
nuclear generation capacity by the year 2030 is planned at about 4-5 GW.
6/21/96: INES SEMINAR AT KAZAKHSTANI ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY
The IAEA conducted a seminar on the International Nuclear Events Scale
(INES) at the Kazakhstani Atomic Energy Agency during June 1996. INES is
used for reporting accidents at civilian atomic energy facilities and during
the transportation of radioactive materials. Kazakhstan, as a member of
the IAEA, joined the INES scale in 1995.
5/30/96: CIS ACCORD ON THE USE OF NUCLEAR ENERGY
It was reported that delegates from Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia,
Tajikistan, and Ukraine approved a plan for cooperation on the peaceful
uses of nuclear energy during their meeting in Minsk. The plan covers nuclear
power development, spent fuel and radioactive waste management, the fuel
cycle, safety assurance, and the use of radiation technologies in medicine
and agriculture.
5/28/96: IAEA TECHNICAL SESSION IN AKTAU
An IAEA technical group conducted a session on fast-neutron reactors in
Aktau during May 1996 at the invitation of the former Director of the Mangystau
Atomic Energy Combine and now Akim (Head) of the Mangystau Oblast, Vyacheslav
Levitin.
1/5/96: BN-350 REACTOR IS ON LINE
On 1/5/96, the BN-350 came back on-line after an eight month period of
upgrading. Two minor events related to coolant pumps occurred shortly after
bringing the reactor on-line. Both events measured at Level 0 on the International
Nuclear Event Scale, since safety mechanisms were fully operable at all
times.
12/27/95: SPECIALISTS ARGUE FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF NUCLEAR ENERGY
An editorial prepared by professors Zhabaga Takibayev and Yuriy Cherepnin
builds a case for the continued development of the Kazakhstani nuclear
energy industry. The authors reiterate the short-sightedness of relying
on coal as a source of energy and cite an increasing level of electric
energy imports to support the need for a more forward-looking program of
nuclear energy development. According to the authors, if Kazakhstan began
seriously producing nuclear energy in 1996, by the year 2000 energy output
would again reach 1993 levels. Another factor compounding the need for
nuclear energy development is competition from abroad, especially from
countries redoubling their efforts to enlarge nuclear energy output such
as Russia and China. Failure to seize opportunities in nuclear energy may
lead to domestic unemployment and the inability of the Kazakhstani energy
industry to compete on the world market in the future.
12/95: NEW REACTOR TO REPLACE AKTAU BN-350 MODELED
Minatom researchers have modeled a 170 MW BNM-170 fast breeder reactor
to replace the aging BN-350 reactor in Aktau. According to researchers,
upgrading the BN-350 would likely increase the reactors life span only
until 2003. Kazak officials also stated in summer 1995 that the construction
of a new commercial reactor at Semipalatinsk is planned.
6/95: ENVIRONMENTALISTS RAISE CONCERNS ABOUT AKTAU PLANT
Zhenis Sadykov, Chairman of the Nevada-Semipalatinsk Problem-Solving Scientific
Committee, stated that, "an alarming situation has arisen in Aktau." According
to Sadykov, the power station is at the end of its service life and its
urgent modernization is essential. Otherwise, the city will be without
water or, "there could be a nuclear explosion similar to Chernobyl."
4/95: BN-350 REACTOR IN AKTAU TAKEN OFF LINE FOR MAJOR
REFURBISHMENT
1/31/95: PARLIAMENTARY HEARINGS HELD ON NUCLEAR ENERGY
Extended parliamentary hearings dedicated to the problems and the future
of the nuclear scientific and industrial complex in the Republic of Kazakhstan
were held on 31 January 1995. The heads of relevant ministries and departments
were invited to the hearings. According to Vladimir Shkolnik, the Minister
of Science and New Technologies, there are two ideas for the development
of nuclear power in the Republic of Kazakhstan. One program plans to put
18-20 GW of nuclear capacity in operation by the year 2003, the other program
envisages only 4-6 GW. Summing up the parliamentary hearings, participants
agreed that it was necessary to create a single concept for the development
of Kazakhstan's nuclear power industry.
12/94: COOLANT PUMP CRACKED AT THE AKTAU REACTOR (INES 0)
OMRI Daily Digest reported that leaking oil from a coolant pump
caused a fire at the Aktau nuclear power station in late December, but
the blaze was quickly extinguished, and no radiation was released.[1] The
Kazakhstani Atomic Energy Agency (KAEA) later criticized erroneous mass-media
reports about the accident, calling them "distortion and conjecture from
the facts." According to the KAEA, during a planned shut-down of the reactor,
checks were being carried out following the fitting of a new seal on the
pump when a small pipe connecting a pressure gauge to one of the plant's
secondary circuit sodium pumps sprang a leak. There was brief concern about
the possibility of fire due to a leak of hot oil near a sodium pump. Firemen
were alerted, but no fire occurred. Because the reactor was shut down,
no radiation was released, and the incident rated a zero on the International
Nuclear Event Scale.[2,3]
6/17/94: KAZAKHSTAN DID NOT ATTEND IAEA CONVENTION
Kazakhstan did not attend an IAEA-sponsored nuclear safety convention in
Vienna. More than eighty countries attended the conference and signed what
critics have called an unenforceable agreement that technically requires
countries to shut down unsafe and/or obsolete reactors. The only signatories
from those new independent republics that have commercial reactors are
Russia and Ukraine. Armenia and Lithuania, the two others besides Kazakhstan,
also did not attend. The treaty will only come into force after 22 countries
deposit instruments of ratification; 17 of which must operate commercial
reactors.
6/94: FUNDING PROBLEMS AT AKTAU REACTOR
It was reported on Moscow television that the BN-350 reactor has been shut
down because the plant has run out of money to pay for fuel. The report
also claims that President Nazarbayev is recommending halting subsidies
to enterprises that are losing money, including by implication the Aktau
nuclear plant. [1,2] Dr. Vladimir Shkolnik, Director General of the
AEA RK, said these reports are inaccurate, and that the BN-350 has been
shut down for routine maintenance. Dr. Shkolnik also said that the fuel
cycle debt problem with Russia was solved by the 24 March 1994 agreements
signed by Russia and Kazakhstan. [3] The apparent lack of funds means that
the plant is unable to pay for fuel, customs duties, or transport charges,
while plant managers report that nearly one quarter of the staff has left
due to the lack of money for their wages. [4]
6/94: KAZAKHSTAN READY FOR NEW REACTOR
A Kazakhstani delegate to a conference of nuclear scientists and engineers
at Obninsk, Russia, stated that Kazakhstan would be ready to put a new,
large-scale reactor into operation by the year 2005.
5/5/94: FUNDS ARE ALLOCATED TO REPLACE AGING FBR
According to a Kazakhstani governmental report, 15 million tenge have been
set aside for a project on replacing the aging FBR at Aktau with a newer
model FBR. Russian and Kazakhstani specialists have yet to agree on a design
of the new reactor.
4/94: AKTAU PLANT PERSONNEL APPEALS FOR URGENT AID
Interruptions in the flow of payments between Kazakhstan and Russia are
threatening the operation of the FBR at Aktau, according to an open letter
submitted to the presidents of both countries by personnel of the nuclear
plant. Urgent aid is requested to prevent a shutdown of the plant, which
would have a paralyzing effect on industry and cities on the Mangyshlak
peninsula. According to this report, there are no plans in place for the
safe shutdown of the reactor.
2/94: MINATOM TO HELP PROLONG LIFE OF AKTAU FBR
Russia's Minatom has offered to work with the KAEA on ways to prolong the
life of the BN-350 for up to ten years, and to replace it with an advanced
FBR design, the Module Breeder Reactor BMN-170. Minatom suggests that this
new design could use much of the existing BN-350's equipment and would
adequately replace its generating capacity.
12/93: KAZAKHSTAN DOES NOT WANT A REPROCESSING FACILITY
Russian nuclear officials have proposed the creation of an "integrated
fast reactor complex" at Aktau, to include a reprocessing facility. Kazakhstan,
however, does not want Aktau to become a center for disposal of the plutonium
from ex-Soviet weapons.
4/93: PROBLEMS AT THE AKTAU REACTOR
The nuclear reactor at Aktau has experienced severe financial and personnel
problems. There are reports of an exodus of Russian specialists from the
plant and of difficulties in obtaining fuel due to the plant's failure
to pay for prior deliveries. These problems pose safety risks and could
necessitate closure of the plant.
|
