nuclear-news

Komarov, who becomes the chairman of the London-based Association next year, said the annual event had attracted a record number of participants, with about 6500 attendees, representatives from 64 countries (not including Russia) and 32 official government delegations.

He told WNN: “The consensus of everyone gathered here, including those who are not part of the nuclear community, is that nuclear energy has a place in the global energy mix…..

Komarov said investment in wind and solar power technology was ten times higher than in nuclear generation.

“That’s not because those technologies are better and ours are worse,” Komarov said. “Perhaps we as a nuclear community missed out and didn’t put sufficient effort into explaining safety and mankind’s need for nuclear power, not only in terms of energy, but also knowledge, education and science, as well as the non-energy uses of nuclear technologies.”…..

2016 was a “very successful year” for Rosatom, he said, and its portfolio of orders is worth $134 billion over the next decade. Many of these contracts are “now active” and cover the full life cycle of nuclear facilities, he said…….

Rosatom’s earnings and profit are growing, Komarov said, but that growth has been curtailed by lower nuclear fuel cycle prices. “The uranium enrichment spot price was once $180 per kg SWU, now it’s about $50/kg, and the uranium spot price has gone from $137 per pound U3O8 to about $20/lb.   We’re still profitable because we have worked seriously on our costs, even during years that were good for us,” he said. “We keep on expanding our business with new products and try to offset what we have under-earned by creating new business. ……http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/C-Russia-urges-more-ambitious-nuclear-capacity-target-27061701.aspx