Expert: It is necessary to start implementing the program for the  construction of a new nuclear unit

ArmInfo. The life of  Armenian nuclear power plant can not be extended all the time, the  national expert of the United Nations on energy Ara Marjanyan said  this at a press conference in Yerevan on September 14, responding to  a question by ArmInfo about the intention of the authorities of the  country voiced by the RA Prime Minister to extend the lifetime of the  second power unit of the station until 2040.

To recall, on July 26, in an interview with the radio station "Ekho  Moskvy", Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the Armenian  government expects to extend the life of the second power unit of the  NPP until 2040. By the specified date, as the head of the government  noted, steps will be taken to build a new nuclear power plant. "I  reckon on Russia's help in this matter, because at the moment we do  not have enough financial resources to implement this project, but if  our Russian colleagues help us, we will gladly accept this  assistance," said Nikol Pashinyan, adding that Armenia is not going  to shut down the nuclear power plant.

According to Marjanyan, if the decision on the next extension is  still made, it will be the third project. "It is necessary to start  implementing the program for the construction of a new unit,  especially since it takes a considerable period of time to complete  this task, starting from design and finishing with construction  activities, "Ara Marjanyan noted. He was very skeptical about the  initiative to build small modular nuclear power plants." This project  does not stand up criticism, "Ara Marjanyan said, stressing that this  initiative came from the former leadership of the Ministry of Energy  Infrastructures and Natural Resources of Armenia, which had poor idea  about nuclear energy. ''The idea of a small modular nuclear power  plant is promoted by the Canadian company, which has already  announced about the implementation of the project at the Roveno  nuclear power plant in Ukraine, which has a reactor similar to the  one on the Armenian NPP", - said Marjanyan.

He again urged the government and the leadership of the Ministry of  Energy to urgently take a decision on the new bloc, especially in the  current conditions when the West carries out an informational  campaign aimed at depriving the republic of nuclear energy. Similar  campaigns, up to the publication of information materials related to  the ANPP in the foreign press, have always been actively supported by  Turkey and Azerbaijan. This is evidenced by an article in the  National Geographic journal, which has absolutely nothing to do with  atomic energy.  Despite the conclusion of a the only professional  structure -IAEA, which noted the high level of safety of the ANPP,  the European Union joined the campaign, with which Armenia concluded  the Comprehensive and Expanded Partnership Agreement last year. In  this document, the expert continued, the final terms of the Armenian  nuclear power plant are stipulated-year 2026 . At the same time,  nothing is said about possible substitution capacities. "However,  based on the activity the EU demonstrates, it can be concluded that  the matter concerns small hydropower stations, renewable and  alternative energy sources . Howeverm, these generation facilities  will not be able to substitute nuclear power plants, since they are  not basic," stated the expert.  On January 30 the deputy Head of the  EU Division for the  Eastern Partnership countries Dirk Lorenz  answering to ArmInfo's question stated that the European Union   continues to insist on the early closure of the Armenian nuclear   power plant, since it is impossible even to bring the level of its   security to international standards even by means of modernization.   At the same time, he said, Brussels understands the importance of the   Armenian NPP in ensuring Armenia's energy security, and this fact is   taken into account by the European Union. Currently, the EU and its   Armenian partners are working to improve the safety of the station.   After the tragic consequences of the accident at the Fukushima   nuclear power plant, the EU initiated stress tests at the EU nuclear   power plants, Armenia carried out a similar stress test. "Now it is   important to implement the results of this stress test, it is also   important to actively develop energy efficiency, alternative and   renewable energy." If you save and use little energy, you will need   less energy in the future," said Dirk Lorenz.  The Armenian nuclear  power plant consists of two units with Soviet (Russian) WWER  reactors. The first unit was commissioned in 1976, the second - in  1980.  In March 1989, after the Spitak earthquake, which killed 25  thousand people, the station's work was stopped. In November 1995, in  connection with the most acute energy crisis, the second power unit  of the station with a capacity of 407.5 MW was involved. In March  2014, the Armenian government decided to extend the lifetime of the  second power unit by 10 years - until 2026. The project is  coordinated by the subsidiary structure of the State Corporation  Rosatom - JSC Rusatom Service. Completion of work is planned for  2019. The Government of the Russian Federation allocated a $ 270  million state export loan to Armenia and a grant of $ 30 million for  these purposes.