RUSSIA TO GRANT $10 MLN TO UPGRADE SAFETY OF ARMENIAN NPP

ArmInfo
2008-09-11 11:15:00

ArmInfo. Russia made a decision to grant $10 mln to upgrade safety of
the second power unit of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant, RA Minister
of Energy and Natural Resources Armen Movsisyan told journalists today.

He said that this technical proposal of Russia was officially
forwarded today to the Armenian party. The funds will be allocated
to Armenia in 2008 for implementation of measures on the NPP safety
upgrade in 2009. According to the minister, the work to be carried
out will be specified at today’s third working meeting in Yerevan on
coordination of the international assistance aimed at the Armenian
NPP safety upgrade. These meetings are held once per year since 2006,
when IAEA Director General Mohamed ElBaradei offered his structure’s
readiness to coordinate the whole technical assistance to the Armenian
NPP on its safety upgrade. A. Movsisyan said that total about $90 mln
were granted so far by the donors for the NPP safety upgrade since
2006 when the plant’s second power unit was restarted. He added that
over half of these funds, about $50-55 mln, were granted by the USA,
and the rest part – by different EU countries.

To recall, the Armenian NPP was transferred to the financial control
of "Iter RAO UES" CJSC, being a subsidiary of RAO "UES of Russia",
in September, 2003. Two power units of Russian sample WWER-440 with
total capacity of 815 MW have been installed at ANPP. The first unit
was commissioned in 1976, the second one – in 1980. In the beginning,
1989, the plant was removed from service for political reasons, and
in the beginning, 1995, the NPP’s second unit with capacity of 404
MW was restarted.