ArmInfo. The close attention to the Armenian nuclear energy sector by major international players is based on the clash of interests between the West and Russia. This was stated by energy security expert Alen Gevondyan in an interview with ArmInfo.
According to him, in addition to purely nuclear energy, there are other elements in this confrontation that are related to the Russian Federation, especially in terms of nuclear fuel supplies, nuclear power plant management, technological support for NPP safety systems, the return of spent nuclear fuel, etc.
Consequently, as the expert noted, this is an extremely sore subject for the West, since the task is to tear Armenia away from Russia and remove it from the Russian Federation's sphere of influence. "However, Russia has always been Armenia's most important partner, be it in energy, energy security, or the economy as a whole. Against this background, the alternatives offered by the West have nothing in common with reality. This is called in one word - Realpolitik," the expert noted.
In particular, he pointed to the so-called nuclear power plants with small modular reactors. Gevondyan noted that there are only two cases of their use in the world, one of which was in the United States. However, this experiment not only failed, but also led to the fact that the company that operated this station subsequently paid large fines to the American authorities for the failed program.
Recall that in May last year, the coordinator of the US government's assistance programs for Europe and Eurasia, Maria Longhi, reported that the United States was considering the option of building small modular nuclear reactors in Armenia, seeking to strengthen its energy independence. She added that the United States was evaluating the possibility of creating small modular nuclear reactors on the territory of the republic, built using American technology and capable of leading to greater energy independence from both Russia and China.
Against this background, as the expert noted, the US is imposing ideas on the Armenian public that are far from reality. "First of all, the public is being misinformed, since for the authorities everything is more than clear and obvious. The authorities, having accepted the American concept, have essentially become its executors. In order to solve the problem, every effort is being made to remove the republic from the Russian zone of influence, including by reducing the energy security of the state. It is no coincidence that a number of deputies from the government periodically make statements that we must learn to live without gas and without nuclear energy," Gevondyan notes.
Meanwhile, according to the expert, the Armenian NPP currently provides about 35% of all electricity produced in the country. It is an extremely important segment in terms of energy consumption, and in reality there is no alternative to it. All theses, expert formulations, propaganda statements and appeals will not be able to compensate for the role of the nuclear power plant either technically or substantively. However, geopolitics is not the area that can be interested in the consequences of the country's refusal from nuclear energy, and what will ultimately happen to the country, to its population," Alen Gevondyan emphasized.
Earlier in Armenia the possibility of building several small modular nuclear reactors with a capacity of 50- 60 MW was discussed. Moreover, the possibility of building them in several regions of the country was even considered. However, the problem rests on the fact that "on the ground" there are simply no such energy facilities: they are either at the design or licensing stage.
