News
10-04-2007 03:33
President of Kazakhstan Considers it Perspective to Develop Nuclear Power in the Republic
Nursultan Nazarbaev, President of Kazakhstan supports a construction of nuclear power plant (NPP) in the republic, informed Interfax-Kazakhstan.
"I am speaking about the construction of nuclear power plant. One might say we have gas, we have coal, why do we need a NPP? First of all, today it is so much profitable to export gas that there is no point to use it inside the republic. If we use it at world market price, how much would be 1 kW/h of power? Second, we have much coal, and coal is lower in cost. However, in course of time, coal will be considered as ecologically unclean product which causes much releases, there will be claims from world community" - said N.Nazarbaev during the interview given for a number of republican TV companies broadcasted on TV on Monday evening.
"Along with the production of power, nuclear power plant is directed to scientific and technical progress: training of personnel working in field of nuclear physics, nuclear power. We possess such an experience. Kazakhstan has one of the top positions in uranium reserves in the world ", - he emphasized.
The intention to construct NPP near Balkhash Lake was first made known to public by Kazakhstan government in 1998. At the same time it was declared that the first unit of the Balkhash NPP would be started in 2005, whole NPP - not earlier than 2015. At that time total cost of the construction estimated by Kazakhstan specialists was within $2 billion. Nevertheless, later the government veiled its purposes in NPP construction considering the public opinion which mainly accepted the plans negatively.
Last year the government defined Almaty (south-east), Mangistau and East-Kazakhstan regions as the most preferable for construction of the first NPP in Kazakhstan.
In October 2006 at the government meeting Danial Akhmetov, Ex-Prime Minister, gave an order to appropriate money from government fund to develop a feasibility study for NPP construction.
According to the last announcement made by official persons, NPP may be constructed in Kazakhstan in Mangistau region (West Kazakhstan) where there was a BN-350 fast breeder reactor operating from 1973 at local MAEK power plant. Currently, the reactor is decommissioned, its fuel is being disposed.