To return to the main Naval Decommissioning and Dismantlement entry, see the Decommissioning and Dismantlement file.
 
This file includes material pertaining to general naval decommissioning and dismantlement developments. For information on developments pertaining to the Northern Fleet, see the Northern Fleet Decommissioning Developments file.  For information on the Pacific Fleet, see the Pacific Fleet Decommissioning Developments file.
 
8/29/2003: RUSSIAN GOVERNMENT ALLOCATES 1.5 BILLION RUBLES FOR SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT
On 29 August 2003, Aleksandr Agapov, director of the Minatom Security and Emergency Situations Department, reported to a meeting of journalists in St. Petersburg that the federal government had allocated 1.5 billion rubles ($49.2 million as of 29 August 2003) for dismantling decommissioned Russian nuclear submarines in 2003, while international partners had provided another $1 billion rubles ($32.8 million) in financing. (For more information on Russian financing of submarine dismantlement, see the 6/24/2003 entry, below.)
[Nikolay Krupenik, "Dva s polovinoy milliarda rubley vlozhila Rossiya v utilizatsiyu spisannykh atomnykh podlodok v 2003 godu," ITAR-TASS, 29 August 2003; in Integrum Techno, http://www.integrum.ru.] {Entered 10/27/2003 SLK}

6/24/2003: RUSSIA PLANS TO SPEND $45 MILLION A YEAR FOR SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT
According to Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy, Sergey Antipov, Russia has planned to allocate $45 million a year to dismantle its own submarines, Interfax reported on 24 June 2003. So far, it has exceeded this amount and $60 million will be spent for that purpose in 2003. Antipov also added that $4 billion are needed to completely dismantle all Russian submarines.
["Minatom RF rasschityvayet na rasshireniye pomoshchi Velikobritaniyi v utilizatstiyi APL," Interfax, 24 June 2003.] {Entered 8/19/2003 AV}

3/26/2003: RUSSIA DISMANTLED 17 NUCLEAR SUBMARINES IN 2002
On 26 March 2003, Interfax reported that 17 nuclear submarines had been dismantled in 2002 in Russia. According to Minatom, spent nuclear fuel was unloaded from the reactors of 14 submarines. In addition, 17 train-loads of spent fuel from the Russian Navy and one train-load of fuel from the icebreaker fleet were taken to the Mayak facility.
["Rossiya v 2002 godu utilizirovala 17 atomnykh podvodnykh lodok," Interfax, 26 March 2003.] {Entered 4/18/2003 AV}

11/12/2002: NUCLEAR FUEL FROM KOLA PENINSULA DECOMMISSIONED SUBMARINES TO BE UNLOADED BY 2007
On 12 November 2002, Interfax reported that current plans call for all decommissioned submarines stored on the Kola Peninsula to be defueled by 2007, at a rate of 20 submarines every year.
[Interfax, 12 November 2002; in Agenstvo Voyennykh Novostey; in "Russia: Fuel From All Decommissioned Nuclear Subs In Kola To Be Unloaded By 07," FBIS Document CEP20021112000308.] {Entered 4/9/2003 AV}

9/23/2002: LEPSE AGREEMENT SIGNED
On 23 September 2002, the final framework agreement was signed to release funds and to start working on the service ship Lepse.  For more information, please see the 9/23/2002 entry in the Russia: Naval Foreign Assistance Developments file.

6/11/2002: TWENTY DECOMMISSIONED NUCLEAR SUBMARINES CURRENTLY UNDERGOING DISMANTLEMENT
On 11 June 2002, Russian Minister of Atomic Energy Aleksander Rumyantsev said that 20 decommissioned nuclear submarines were being dismantled at the time. He said that the total number of submarines that have been dismantled is 70, and another 100 are awaiting dismantlement over the course of the next several years.
["Nuclear Energy Ministry Dismantles 20 Nuclear Submarines-Nuclear Energy Minister," Interfax, 11 June 2002.] {Entered on 6/18/2002 TM}   

5/22/2002: MINATOM PLANS TO BUILD RADIOACTIVE WASTE BURIAL FACILITY ON NOVAYA ZEMLYA
On 22 May 2002, Minatom's board discussed the construction of a burial facility for low- and medium-level radioactive waste on Novaya Zemlya. According to Minatom's press service, the archipelago's Yuzhnyy island was selected to store waste from nuclear submarines and icebreakers belonging to the Russian Northern Fleet, including radioactive waste accumulated in the Mironova Gora temporary storage facility near Severodvinsk. The new waste depository will allow the reduction of radioactive materials in Arkhangelsk and Murmansk Oblasts. The estimated cost of the future facility, to be built in 36 months, is $73 million. A positive state environmental impact statement was completed in 2002.   An international consortium that includes Sweden and Norway has also endorsed the project. Detailed engineering will start in 2002.
["Na sostoyavshemsya 22 maya zasedanii kollegii Minatoma Rossii obsuzhdalsya vopros o stroitelstve na arkhipelage Novaya Zemlya mogilnika dlya zakhoroneniya radioaktivnykh otkhodov sredney i nizkoy stepeni aktivnosti," Nuclear.ru Web Site, http://www.nuclear.ru/news/full/955.shtml, 23 May 2002.] {Entered 7/3/2002 DA}

4/25/2002: PACIFIC FLEET TO RECEIVE A FLOATING DOCK FOR ITS NUCLEAR SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT PROGRAM
On 25 April 2002, a floating dock built by the Pallada Shipyard (Kherson, Ukraine) was transferred to the Russian Navy in Sevastopol. The dock has passed all trials and is ready for service in the Russian Pacific Fleet, where it will be used for nuclear submarine dismantlement.
[Vyacheslav Yartsev, ITAR-TASS, 25 Aprli 2002; in "Russian Commissions Floating Dock for Nuclear Submarines in Crimea," FBIS Document CEP20020425000189.] {Entered 5/6/2002 EF}
 
3/27/2002: MINATOM NEEDS MORE FUNDS FOR DISMANTLEMENT
On 27 March 2002, Minister of Atomic Energy Aleksandr Rumyantsev said at a press conference that by 2004-2005 Minatom would be able to defuel 25 decommissioned nuclear submarines a year compared to the current 18. He also said that more federal money must be directed to scrapping nuclear submarines if the problem of dismantlement is to be solved by 2010. To this end he suggested that financing should be increased from the current 1.9 billion rubles (almost $61 million as of 27 March 2002) a year to 2.5 billion rubles (about $80.3 million as of 27 March 2002) a year.
[Agenstvo Voyennykh Novostey, 27 March 2002; in "Russia to Unload Nuclear Fuel From 25 Subs a Year," FBIS Document CEP20020327000131.] {Entered 5/13/2002 EF}
 
3/19/2002: DECOMMISSIONED NUCLEAR SUBMARINES SHOULD BE SUNK, SAYS VICE-ADMIRAL VALERIY DOROGIN
On 19 March 2002, Vice-Admiral Valeriy Dorogin, currently a State Duma deputy from Kamchatka, stated that decommissioned nuclear submarines should be scuttled, not dismantled. Before being sunk, however, he said that each submarine should be defueled and its nuclear reactor compartment filled with an anticorrosive material like glass. According to Dorogin, this approach is justified on economic grounds because materials from a scrapped submarine earn only about 30 million rubles (over $960,000 as of 19 March 2002), while scrapping a submarine costs 80 million rubles (about $2.57 as of 19 March 2002). Dorogin also said that only submarines made of alloy steel should be sunk, while titanium-hull submarines should be spared.
[Agenstvo voyennykh novostey, 19 March 2002; in "Lawmaker Proposes Sinking Written-Off Nuclear Submarines," FBIS Document CEP20020319000153.] {Entered 4/18/2002 EF}
 
2/14/2002: NINETY-EIGHT DECOMMISSIONED NUCLEAR SUBMARINES STILL HAVE NUCLEAR FUEL ON BOARD
On 14 February 2002, Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy Valeriy Lebedev told ITAR-TASS that Russia had 98 decommissioned nuclear submarines that had not yet been defueled. According to Lebedev, submarine dismantlement should be expedited as maintenance of each decommissioned submarine costs 5-6 million  rubles (approximately $160,000-190,000 as of 14 February 2002) per year.
["Lack of Funds Delays Scrapping of 98 Russian Nuclear Submarines," ITAR-TASS, 14 February 2002.] {Entered 3/15/2002 EF}
 
12/21/2001: IMANDRA DEFUELS VICTOR III SUBMARINE AT POLYARNINSKIY
On 21 December 2001, Bellona reported that the Imandra service ship had defuelled the Victor III-class submarine K-254 at the Polyarninskiy Shipyard in November.
["Nuclear Powered Icebreakers. Imandra collided with laid-up submarine," Bellona: Nuclear Chronicle from Russia, http://www.bellona.no, 21 December 2001.] {Entered 3/21/2003 AV}

9/17/2001: TERRORIST ATTACKS IN US SLOW DOWN SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT PROCESS IN RUSSIA
The 17 September 2001 issue of Vremya novostey quoted First Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy Valentin Ivanov as saying that the process of defueling nuclear submarines has been slowed down because of security concerns in light of the terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, DC. According to Ivanov, as of September 2001, spent nuclear fuel had been unloaded from 12 of the 21 submarines scheduled to be defueled in 2001. The dismantlement process could also suffer because the United States might stop or limit financing for scrapping Russian nuclear submarines, said Advisor to the Minister of Atomic Energy Nina Yanovskaya. According to Yanovskaya, Minatom is planning to ask the Russian State Duma to increase budget allocations for submarine dismantlement.
[Viktor Matveyev, "Atomnyy util," Vremya novostey, 17 September 2001; in WPS Yadernyye Materialy, No. 36, 21 September 2001.] {Entered 10/5/2001 EF}
 
7/2001: RUSSIA NEEDS OVER $40 BILLION FOR NUCLEAR SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT, SAYS AKHUNOV
The 28 July 2001 issue of Krasnaya zvezda reported that, according to Viktor Akhunov, the head of Minatom's Directorate for the Environment and Nuclear Facility Decommissioning, Russia will need over $40 billion to deal with the environmental implications of nuclear submarine dismantlement. The money will be needed for construction of nuclear waste processing facilities.
[Boris Vladimirov, "Svedem li kontsy s kontsami?" Krasnaya zvezda, No. 138, 28 July 2001; in Integrum Techno, http://www.integrum.ru.] {Entered 10/17/2001 EF}
 
6/6/2001: TWENTY-ONE NUCLEAR SUBMARINES TO BE DEFUELED IN 2001
On 6 June 2001, at the Environment and the Nuclear Industry conference held in Moscow, Viktor Akhunov, head of the Minatom Directorate for the Environment and Nuclear Facility Decommissioning, said that Russia plans to defuel 21 nuclear submarines in 2001. According to Akhunov, 1.2 billion rubles (over $41 million as of 6 June 2001) will be spent overall on defueling and transporting spent nuclear fuel.
["Rossiya v 2001 godu predpolagayet utilizirovat yadernoye toplivo iz 21 APL," Interfax, 6 June 2001.] {Entered 9/26/2001 EF}
 
1/16/2001: NUCLEAR FUEL UNLOADED FROM 17 SUBS IN 2000
At a 16 January 2001 press conference, Minister of Atomic Energy Yevgeniy Adamov said that 17 nuclear submarines were defueled in 2000. Originally, Russia planned to defuel 18 submarines, but early frosts in January 2000 changed the schedule.
["Press Conference with Minister of Atomic Energy Yevgeniy Adamov," Federal News Service, 16 January 2001.] {Entered 9/25/2001 EF}
 
7/18/2000: NINE SUBS DEFUELED IN FIRST HALF OF 2000
At a seminar on the nuclear and environmental safety of dismantling nuclear submarines in the Russian Far East, Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy Valeriy Lebedev said that in the first half of 2000 nine submarines had been defueled. The ministry plans plans to defuel 23 submarines in 2001. 
[RIA, 18 July 2000; in "Decommissioned Nuclear Submarines Reprocessed in Russian Far East," FBIS Document CEP20000718000071.] {Entered 4/7/2001 EF}
 
7/13/2000: PLAN TO DISMANTLE 60 SUBS REQUIRES FOREIGN AID
For more information, please see the 7/13/2000 entry in the Foreign Assistance Developments file. 
 
4/14/2000: MINATOM DEFUELED 8 SUBS IN 1999, WILL DEFUEL 18 IN 2000
On 14 April 2000 Nezavisimoye voyennoye obozreniye reported that Minatom removed nuclear fuel from eight submarines in 1999, and plans to unload 18 in 2000.  According to Minatom, the Russian Navy has 140 decommissioned submarines, of which 70 have nuclear fuel on board and await dismantlement.[1,2] (For more on the disputed number of submarines awaiting defueling and dismantlement, see 3/14/2000 entry, below.) Minatom will have to dispose of 535 MT of spent fuel in 2000.[2]  On 11 April 2000, Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy Vladimir Vinogradov said that Minatom received 560 million rubles (nearly $20 million as of 11 April 2000) for submarine dismantlement in 1999 and would receive 850 million rubles (nearly $30 million as of 11 April 2000) in 2000.[3] Since these funds are insufficient, Minatom plans to use funds earned through the HEU deal with the US.[1]
Sources:
[1] Sergey Sokut, Petr Sukhanov, "Minatom Accepts Submarines," Nezavisimoye voyennoye obozreniye, 14 April 2000; in "Minatom Accepts Submarines for Elimination," FBIS Document CEP20000419000274.
[2] "S. Shoygu: Vazhneyshey zadachey v oblasti yadernoy bezopasnosti Rossii yavlyayetsya utilizatsiya yadernykh reaktorov podvodnykh lodok," RosBiznesKonsalting, 28 March 2000; in UNIAN 27 March-2 April 2000.
[3] Interfax, 11 April 2000; in "Russia's Uranium Deal Earnings To Increase in 2000," FBIS Document CEP20000411000206.{Entered 5/2/2000 CC}
 
3/14/2000: NUMBER OF DECOMMISSIONED AND DEFUELED SUBS IN DISPUTE
On 14 March 2000 Russian Navy Deputy Commander-in-Chief Mikhail Barskov announced that 39 nuclear submarines had been scrapped in 1999, and there were plans to scrap 50 in 2000.  However, this would require 800 million rubles (about $28 million as of 14 March 2000) more than already allocated in the state defense order for 2000.[1] In February 2000 Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy Valeriy Lebedev said that Russia has decommissioned 179 nuclear submarines, and that it will defuel (or "scrap") 17 in 2000.  Further, he has indicated that there are 72 or 74 nuclear submarines in the Northern Fleet awaiting defueling.[2]  This contrasts to Lebedev's November 1999 statement that 18 submarines would be "recycled" in 2000, and that a total of 107 submarines awaited dismantling in the North.[3] According to Nikolay Filippov, Deputy Chief of the Russian Federal Inspectorate for Nuclear and Radiation Safety's Northern European Department, a total of 160 submarines need to be recycled in Russia, of which 60 are in the Northern Fleet.[4]
Sources:
[1] Sergey Sirotin, RIA Novosti, 14 March 2000; in "Russia: 50 Atomic Submarines Due To Be Scrapped in 2000," FBIS Document CEP20000314000035.
[2] ITAR-TASS, 17 February 2000; in "Russia, Norway discuss decommissioning and scrapping of nuclear submarines," Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe, http://web.lexis-nexis.com/universe/.
[3] Dmitriy Litovkin, "Russia's Naval Doctrine Does Not Consider Problems of Written-Off Nuclear Powered Submarines," Yadernyy kontrol, 15 December 1999; in "Russia's Nuclear Sub Recycling Problem, " FBIS Document CEP20000322000002.
[4] ITAR-TASS, 10 March 2000; in "Cash Shortage Hampers Russian Nuclear Submarine Project," FBIS Document CEP20000311000021.{Entered 5/4/2000 CC}
 
 
12/99: NEW SPENT FUEL PROJECT AND STORAGE SITES CONSIDERED
In December 1999, Deputy Minister of Atomic Energy Valeriy Lebedev said that Minatom's research centers are working on a new disposal project that would speed up the process of decommissioning nuclear submarines.[1] In addition, he noted that a new plant for processing liquid radioactive waste at Atomflot will be operational at the end of 1999.[1,2,3]  As of December 1999, Russia was searching for places to site temporary storage facilities for spent fuel from nuclear submarines.  Potential sites include Polyarninskiy Shipyard, Gremikha, and Nerpa on the Kola Peninsula, and Vilyuchinsk on the Kamchatka Peninsula.[1,3]  (For more information on storage facility developments, see the Polyarninskiy, Gremikha, and Nerpa developments sections.)  Some fuel will be transported to the RT-1 Spent Fuel Reprocessing Facility at Mayak, although Minatom and the four-state Industrial Group formed to deal with Russia's spent fuel issues have agreed to halt plans to build a new spent naval fuel storage facility at Mayak.[1,2]  [For more information on these plans see the Other Multinational Programs entry in the Naval Foreign Assistance file as well as the 5/28/98 entry and 10/29/97 entry in the Mayak Spent Fuel Reprocessing file.]
Sources:
[1] "Russia targets 18 subs for scrapping," Nuclear Engineering International, 16 December 1999, p. 4; in Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe, http://web.lexis-nexis.com.
[2] Nadezhda Sosnina, "Ne vzorvetsya. No zarazit mozhet," Polyarnaya pravda, 27 June 2000, p. 2; in WPS Yadernyye Materialy, No. 17, 14 July 2000.
[3] Thomas Nilsen, "Mayak Spent Fuel Storage Moves to Kola," Nuclear Chronicle from Russia online edition, http://www.bellona.no/imaker, 20 March 2000. {Entered 7/18/00 YF}
  
11/23/99: RUSSIAN SECURITY COUNCIL DISCUSSES DISMANTLEMENT
On 23 November 1999 the Russian Security Council again devoted a session to submarine dismantlement issues (for information on a similar session earlier in the year, see the 1/27/99 entry, below). According to Russian Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Vladimir Kuroyedov, Government Decree No. 518 of 28 May 1998, which transferred jurisdiction over decommissioned submarines from the navy to Minatom, resulted in the release of 10,000 naval personnel from duties on decommissioned submarines, without their replacement by Minatom.  Further, over one billion rubles (over $37 million as of 15 December 1999) in the navy budget that might otherwise have been spent on the upkeep of decommissioned vessels went instead for the repair and servicing of operational vessels.  Essentially, the Defense Ministry budget has not included money for submarine dismantlement in the past several years.  According to Minister of Atomic Energy Yevgeniy Adamov, when Minatom formulated proposals to speed up the dismantlement of Russian submarines it had intended to assume responsibility only for submarine reactors and spent fuel.  Instead, Decree No. 518 made it the sole organization responsible for decommissioned submarines.  Subsequently, at a 7 June 1999 meeting between Minatom, the Defense Ministry, and the Ministry of Economics (which was then still  in charge of shipyards -- these duties have since been transferred to the Shipbuilding Agency), a tripartite agreement redistributing functions and a three-year plan for the transfer of nuclear submarines subject to dismantlement were concluded.  According to Minatom plans, in 1999 the ministry was supposed to build facilities for defueling nuclear submarines, rebuild old storage facilities as well as create new ones, and develop new transport and storage containers for radioactive waste.  In 2000 dismantlement itself was to begin.  However, $1.4 billion was required for the above infrastructure developments in the North alone, while only $50 million was allocated in the Russian budget.  
[Dmitriy Litovkin, "Russia's Naval Doctrine Does Not Consider Problems of Written-Off Nuclear Powered Submarines," Yadernyy kontrol, 15 December 1999; in "Russia's Nuclear Sub Recycling Problem, " FBIS Document CEP20000322000002.{Entered 5/4/2000 CC}
 
6/22/99: AKSENENKO STRESSES NEED TO DISMANTLE SUBS
On a visit to Murmansk, First Deputy Prime Minister Nikolay Aksenenko announced to Northern Fleet commanders, plant directors, and local authorities that the government seeks to accelerate the dismantlement of nuclear-powered submarines. Aksenenko acknowledged the environmental hazards associated with the growing number of submarines awaiting dismantlement, the high cost of maintenance, and the Ministry of Defense's insufficient interest to date in solving the dismantlement problem.  He called for better coordination of the civilian and military aspects of dismantlement work and offered comprehensive federal assistance.[1]  Aksenenko's trip followed a session of the governmental commission on operational issues where he noted the difficulties in fulfilling the dismantlement program over the last five years.[2]
Sources:
[1] Vasiliy Belousov and Aleksander Shashkov, ITAR-TASS, 22 June 1999; in "Aksenenko Urges Rapid Utilization of Used Warships," FBIS Document FTS19990623001582.
[2] Vitaliy Denisov, "Problema utilizatsii vooruzheniy ostayetsya," Krasnaya zvezda, 18 June 1999, p. 1.  {Entered 1/7/00 JET}
 
6/99:  US FUNDS LIMITED SPENT NAVAL FUEL REPROCESSING AT MAYAK
For details, please see the 6/99 entry in the Naval Radioactive Waste Developments file.
{Entered 8/11/99 JET}
 
6/99:  SSN DISMANTLEMENT FEASIBILITY AND PILOT STUDIES UNDERWAY
For more information on this topic please see the 6/99 entry in the Naval Foreign Assistance Developments file.
{Entered 7/22/99 TR}
 
3/23/99:  RUSSIA WILL DOUBLE RATE OF SPENT FUEL REMOVAL
Minister of Atomic Energy Yevgeniy Adamov announced at a press conference that the speed at which spent nuclear fuel is removed from decommissioned nuclear submarines will double.  Adamov said that Russia had intended to remove spent fuel from ten nuclear submarines every year, but beginning in 2001, will remove fuel from at least 20 submarines per year.  As a result, some of the environmental problems posed by the Russian Navy will be solved.  Adamov also said that Minatom has made great progress in the last year in "creating a container" for spent fuel storage.
[Armed Forces Newswire Service, 23 March 1999; in "Russia to Double Rate of Nuclear Submarine Cleanup," Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe, http://web.lexis-nexis.com/universe/.]  {Entered 5/26/99 HA}
 
2/24/99: RUSSIAN-US DISMANTLEMENT PROGRAM MAY INVOLVE TACTICAL NUCLEAR SUBS
For a detailed account of this issue please see the 2/24/99 entry in the Naval Foreign Assistance Developments file.
{Entered 7/23/99 TR}
 
1/27/99:  RUSSIAN SECURITY COUNCIL DISCUSSES DISMANTLEMENT
On 27 January 1999, the Russian Security Council met to prioritize steps to speed up dismantlement of decommissioned nuclear submarines and surface ships and to appropriately handle spent nuclear fuel and liquid and solid radioactive wastes.[1,2]  The council created recommendations on funding and resource allocation for both organizational and practical measures.[2]  The group also discussed the importance of environmental rehabilitation in areas where these vessels pose a radiological threat.  Representatives from the Ministry of Finance, Minatom, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of the Economy, and other senior government officials attended the meeting.[1,2]
Sources:
[1] Polyarnaya Pravda, 2 February 1999; in "Highlights from Murmansk Press: 12 January-2 February 1999," FBIS Document FTS19990301001502.
[2] RIA Novosti, 27 January 1999; in "Russian Security Council Discusses Nuclear-Powered Ships," FBIS Document FTS19990127001749.  {Entered 4/21/99 HA}
 
5/29/98: MINATOM TO TAKE ON DECOMMISSIONING NUCLEAR SUBMARINES
Minatom has become the main coordinator for nuclear submarine dismantlement and related nuclear material handling and storage activities.[1,2]  Minatom has drafted a proposal that calls for dimantlement of all currently decommissioned submarines by 2005.[2]  The proposal involves 13 Russian shipbuilding and repair enterprises located primarily in the Northern and Pacific Fleets, as well as in other areas of northern Russia.[1]  Minatom estimates the total cost of the project at $1.5 to $2 billion.[2]  The proposal calls for the federal budget to fund 30 to 40 percent of the program, foreign assistance from countries including the United States and Great Britian to fund a portion, and revenues generated from the sale of scrap metal from dismantled submarines to fund the remainder.[1,2]   Minatom created a special department responsible for submarine dismantlement and related issues and also plans to establish agencies in both the Northern and Pacific Fleets.[3]
Sources:
[1] "Problemoy utilizatsii atomnykh podvodnykh lodok teper budet zanimatsya Minatom RF - postanovleniye pravitelstva," Interfax, 29 May 1998. {Entered 9/11/98 JET}
[2] Olga Antonova, "Minatom monopoliziruyet unichtozheniye starykh podlodok," Vremya MN, 6 June 1998, p. 2.
[3] James Clay Moltz, Report on the Conference on "Perspectives on International Cooperation in the Dismantlement of Nuclear Submarines," Moscow, Russia, 11 December 1998. {Updated 2/19/99  HA}
 
3/11/98: CIVILIAN AGENCY TO SCRAP RUSSIAN NUCLEAR SUBMARINES
Russian Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev announced on 11 March 1998 that President Boris Yeltsin had approved the creation of a civilian agency to scrap Russia's decommissioned nuclear submarines and chemical weapons.[1,2]  The civilian agency would assume the duties handled by the Ministry of Defense and Ministry of Atomic Energy.  Sergeyev said that the creation of the agency would relieve the Ministry of Defense of functions that he considers inappropriate for it to conduct.[2]
Sources:
[1] "New Russian Civilian Agency to Scrap Nuclear Submarines, Chemical Weapons," Disarmament Diplomacy, March 1998, pp. 43-44.
[2] "Civilians to scrap Russia's nuclear submarines," Jane's Defence Weekly, 18 March 1998, p. 5.  {Entered 9/1/98  HA}
 
2/98:  NUCLEAR SUBMARINE DISPOSAL
Nuclear submarines started being retired in large numbers in 1989.  After a reactor accident on an Echo SSGN in June 1989, a decision was made to retire most of the first-generation submarines.  Financial concerns, poor construction and maintenance, and arms-control obligations quickly led to rapid retirement of second- and even some third-generation submarines.  Approximately 20 subs were retired in 1990, and by 1998 that number had grown to about 167 subs.  As many as 35 more submarines may be retired over the next decade.  Only 50-60 of the 167 submarines that have been retired have had their fuel offloaded.  Those still containing fuel cannot be scrapped and are tied up at bases and shipyards.
[Joshua Handler, "The Lasting Legacy: Nuclear Submarine Disposal," Jane's Navy International, January/February 1998, pp. 15-16.]
 
1/20/98: PROBLEMS HIT SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT PROCESS
In January 1998, Segodnya reported that 107 decommissioned nuclear submarines were floating at docks at Russian Northern and Pacific Fleet bases awaiting dismantlement.  Due primarily to financial difficulties, many of these submarines still contain their reactors.  Specialists do not know how to deal with the reactors once they reach the end of their service lives.  The Ministry of Defense tried to initiate a special governmental session in order to request more funds for the dismantlement and destruction of nuclear weapons and for the fulfillment of related treaty obligations.  Although the session should have occurred in October 1997, it did not. The Ministry of Defense must work with its original budget of 1.9 billion rubles (approximately $316 million) and has received only 700 million rubles (approximately $116 million) of this amount, which is not enough to support even last year's slow pace of dismantlement.  Moreover, the Ministry of Atomic Energy is unable to reprocess the spent nuclear fuel from the reactors, and a new facility for processing liquid radioactive waste is also needed.
[Oleg Odnokolenko, "Posledniy eshelon v yadernuyu bezopastnost," Segodnya, 20 January 1998, p. 3.] {Entered 7/31/98 HA}
 
5/30/96: BETTER NUCLEAR SUBMARINE DISMANTLEMENT NEEDED
The Northern and Pacific fleets have 140 decommissioned but still unsalvaged nuclear-powered submarines, half of which have not had nuclear fuel unloaded. By 2000, Russia will be required to decommission a total of 160 nuclear-powered submarines, in addition to 100 nuclear-powered ships. The current bottleneck is reportedly due to a lack of technological capacity, such as the need for three more special workshops of the type used to unload nuclear reactors from submarines. The delivery of spent fuel to the Mayak Chemical Combine for reprocessing and the storage of solid and liquid radioactive waste are pressing problems.
 
Technology used to cut up submarines is ecologically unsound, dangerous to workers' health and turns valuable steel into iron. The annual cost of operations for maintenance of one decomissioned nuclear-powered submarine is over one billion rubles; transport of spent fuel for reprocessing is over 5 billion rubles; the cutting up of one submarine over 500 million rubles.
 
Reportedly, a new technology has been developed by an "independent creative association of Russian scientists, inventors and practical workers" which assures complete decontamination of reactor compartments and equipment, supercompacting of radioactive materials for easy burial, and removal of spent fuel from damaged reactors, among other things, at a cost one order of magnitude less than the US technology, and two orders of magnitude less than current Russian methods. These new technologies have been aunable to attract the interest of department heads "[e]ngaged in a fight for survival."
[Aleksandr Ivanovich Kurchatov, "Naval Chernobyls: Are We Sensibly Destroying Nuclear-Powered Submarines?" Nezavisimoye voyennoye obozreniye, 30 May 1996, No. 10, p. 5; in "Better Methods for Nuclear Submarine Dismantlement Needed," FBIS-UMA-96-138-S, 30 May 1996.]
 
9/28/95: FIVE HUNDRED MT OF NUCLEAR FUEL AWAITS REMOVAL FROM SUBS
It was reported that removal of 500 metric tons of spent nuclear fuel, contained in about 30,000 fuel assemblies from 50 Russian submarines, is still pending. Russia currently stores its submarines awaiting decommissioning at a site near Murmansk and at a base in Siberia.
[Mark Hibbs, "Power Restored At Gunpoint Averts Russian Sub Core Melt," Nucleonics Week, 28 September 1995, p. 12.]
 
5/95: FOURTEEN SSBNS DISMANTLED OR CONVERTED
Russia has eliminated or converted 14 SSBNs, including ten Yankee-I, one Yankee-II, two Delta-I, and one Delta-III. A third Delta-I is ready to be eliminated at Nerpa, but work has not yet begun. In addition, 212 SLBMs with 244 warheads have also been dismantled.
[Jack Mendelsohn and Dunbar Lockwood, "U.S.-Russian Strategic Weapons Dismantlements," Arms Control Today, May 1995, p. 32.]
 
3/95: SUBS DECOMMISSIONED, FUEL REMOVED FROM ONE THIRD OF TOTAL
As of March 1995, 126 nuclear submarines had been decommissioned, 50 in the Pacific Fleet, and 76 in the Northern Fleet. The spent fuel had been removed from only one-third of the subs, leaving 80 to be defueled. Dismantlement was underway or complete on 20 to 22 submarines. Spent fuel from the dismantled subs will be stored afloat until adequate land-based storage facilities have been constructed.
[Oleg Bukharin and Joshua Handler, "Russian Nuclear-Powered Submarine Decommissioning," Science and Global Security, Vol. 5, 1995, p. 255.]
 
3/16/95: GOVERNMENT COMMISSION DISCUSSES DECOMMISSIONED SUBS
During a closed meeting the Russian Governmental Commission on Urgent Issues raised the question of "Provisional Measures for Comprehensive Recycling of Nuclear Submarines and Vessels with Nuclear Power Assemblies," addressed earlier by an interdepartmental group headed by First Deputy Minister of Defense, A. Kokoshin. Out of 126 decommissioned submarines 11 have been recycled, nine have had their cores removed and are being prepared for long-term storage, and 13 are in the process of being recycled by the Northern Fleet and industry enterprises. Kokoshin proposed to increase funding for submarine decommissioning.
["Issue of Nuclear Submarine Recycling Is Discussed," Krasnaya zvezda, 16 March 1995, p. 1.]
 
11/7/94: GOSATOMNADZOR REPORT CITES MARITIME NUCLEAR ACCIDENTS
A secret Gosatomnadzor report from 13 May 1994, leaked to the press in Moscow, mentions numerous nuclear accidents on ships and submarines that were never reported. Reportedly, there are 60 decommissioned submarines that still have their nuclear reactors intact, even though they were supposed to have been removed; the report compared the situation to having 60 "floating spent nuclear fuel storage ships."
[Anatoli Lieven, "KGB Spy Alerted Kremlin Over Chornobyl Safety," The Times, 17 November 1994.]
 
11/1/94: ONE HUNDRED TWENTY ONE SUBS DECOMMISSIONED
Feliks Gromov, Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy, said that 121 nuclear powered submarines had been decommissioned. He noted that the nuclear fuel in as many as 85 submarines retired from service has not been removed. Gromov also said that the 17 percent of the total defense budget currently allocated for disposal and storage of submarine reactors and fuel is insufficient.
[Interfax, 1 November 1994; in "Officials Discuss Disposal Of Nuclear Submarines," FBIS-SOV-94-212, 1 November 1994.]
 
10/94: GREENPEACE REPORT STATES 121 SUBS DECOMMISSIONED
Russian sources are cited in a Greenpeace report as stating that by mid-1994, 121 nuclear powered submarines had been removed from service.
[Joshua Handler, "Radioactive Waste Situation In The Russian Pacific Fleet, Nuclear Waste Disposal Problems, Submarine Decommissioning, Submarine Safety, and Security Of Naval Fuel," Greenpeace Trip Report, 27 October 1994, p. 44.]

 

Page last updated 28 January 2004
Comments or questions? Contact Cristina Chuen at MIIS CNS: cristina.chuen@miis.edu
 

This material is produced independently for NTI by the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of and has not been independently verified by NTI or its directors, officers, employees, agents. Copyright © 2002 by MIIS.

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