RIA Novosti, Russia
Nov 17 2004

ARMENIAN NUCLEAR POWER PLANT CLOSURE TO COST EU A LOT

YEREVAN, November 17 (RIA Novosti) – The European Union intends to
fund the search for alternative sources of power in Armenia since it
is going to close the only Armenian nuke facility. The money is
supposed to be included into the budget of the EU new programme of
cooperation with CIS commonwealth.

On Wednesday Levon Vardanyan, in charge of the main board for
technical development and external relations at the Armenian Energy
Ministry, said that the project will be carried out irrespective of
the EU other programmes regarding the Armenian nuclear power
facility.

“We are well aware that the Armenian facility will eventually be put
out of service. The problem is under what conditions this whether
there is an alternative might be”, Vardanyan siad.

The European Union insists on mothballing the Armenian nuke and is
ready to allocate 100 million euros. Armenian experts say that the
creation of alternative generating capacities will cost almost a
billion euros.

The Armenian nuclear power plant was put into operation in 1980 and
shut down in March 1989. The energy crisis in Armenia restarted it in
November 1995.

Having the Russian VVER-440 power reactor of the first generation,
the Armenian facility’s second unit accounts for an average of 30 to
40 percent of the national electricity output. Experts say the plant
can remain in use until 2016.

In September 2003 the Armenian nuclear power plant was passed in
trust management for five years to INTER RAO UES, a subsidiary of the
RAO Russia’s Unified Energy Systems and the Rosenergoatom concern.