Russia keenly promoting ?unaffordable nuclear power to Hungary, South Africa
RUSSIA COULD SCORE BIG IN SA, HUNGARY’S NUCLEAR EXPANSION PLANS, EyeWitness News, 22 Apr 16 Lobbyists are challenging the legality of SA’s proposed 9,600 megawatt nuclear build programme. Rahima Essop BUDAPEST – Russia could benefit in both South Africa and Hungary’s nuclear expansion plans, but there are procurement and legal hurdles.
Environmental lobbyists are challenging the legality of South Africa’s proposed 9,600 megawatt nuclear build programme before government opens the tender process.
At the same time, the European Commission is probing whether Hungary’s decision to award a contract to Russia to build two new nuclear reactors was in line with its procurement regulations.
Eighty percent of the financing for the Hungarian project would be covered by a loan from Russia, to be paid off over 21 years at a stepped interest rate…….
In South Africa, opposition politicians are concerned government’s nuclear build programme is not affordable and will plunge the country deeper into debt.
Russian atomic energy company, Rosatom has said it’s open to help finance the project, if it’s selected as the preferred bidder.
However, it’s unclear when Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson will call for quotes for the tender.
Rosatom has sponsored a press trip to Hungary to showcase its capacity to build power plants across the globe…….http://ewn.co.za/2016/04/22/Russia-could-score-big-in-SA-Hungarian-nuclear-deal-plans
Russian nuclear corporation Rosatom to “educate” South Africans on benefits of nuclear power
ROSATOM TO GROW PUBLIC AWARENESS ON NUCLEAR ENERGY, Eyewitness News, The Russian atomic energy company faces strong resistance from environmental lobbyists in SA. Rahima Essop 21 Apr 16 CAPE TOWN – Rosatom says it has to ‘gradually grow public awareness and acceptance’ about nuclear energy as the Russian atomic energy company faces strong resistance from environmental lobbyists and opposition politicians in South Africa.
Two organisations have challenged the legality of government’s proposed 9,600 MW nuclear build programme in court before Energy Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson calls for quotes for the tender.
Rosatom is said to be on the inside track for the contract.
The Democratic Alliance (DA), meanwhile, is pushing for the project to be abandoned on the basis that it’s unaffordable and shrouded in secrecy.
Rosatom has billed nuclear as a cheap source of energy and a job-creating solution for the country.
The company, which is building 34 reactors across the globe, is hoping to influence South African perceptions about nuclear…….Rosatom has sponsored a press trip to Hungary. http://ewn.co.za/2016/04/21/Rosatom-to-gradually-grow-public-awareness-on-nuclear-energy
Russia marketing nuclear power stations to Laos: Russia will build and operate them
Russia and Laos plan nuclear cooperation, World Nuclear News, 15 April 2016
A memorandum of cooperation in the field of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes has been signed by Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom and the ministry of energy and mines of Laos……
In August 2015, it was reported that Rosatom and Laos were in negotiations to set up the Southeast Asian country’s first nuclear power plant. The talks concerned Russia building two 1000 MWe nuclear power reactors in Laos on a build-operate-transfer basis. http://www.world-nuclear-news.org/NP-Russia-and-Laos-plan-nuclear-cooperation-1504164.html
Russia Rejects N.Korea’s Claim to Status of Nuclear Power – Lavrov
“We, as well as China, reject North Korea’s nuclear-missile ambitions,” Lavrov stressed
Russi, france, USA, all vying to market nuclear reactors to China
Rosatom hopes to plug into nuclear industry By Lyu Chang (China Daily) 2016-04-08 Rosatom, the Russian State Atomic Energy Corp, is seeking to hit big in China’s nuclear industry with the opening of a regional center headquartered in Beijing on Thursday,according to a senior official of the company.
“We are looking to expand our business in China, a market with huge potential for growth inthe nuclear industry, and the activities of regional center are designed to help strengthen ourcooperation with the country,” said Alexander Merten, president of Rosatom InternationalNetwork……..
China’s nuclear industry is on the fast track to become one of the world’s largest, with plans tohave completed 58 gigawatts of installed capacity with another 30 gW under construction bythe end of 2020.
But Rosatom will face fierce competition from companies such as the US WestinghouseElectric and France’s nuclear giant Areva with rival third-generation nuclear designs such asAP1000 and EPR1000, both of which aim to expand its presence in the Chinese market…….https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox?compose=153f5049f5598818
Russia building new multiple-warhead missiles
Russia Doubling Nuclear Warheads New multiple-warhead missiles to break arms treaty limit, Washington Free Beacon, BY: Bill Gertz April 1, 2016 Russia is doubling the number of its strategic nuclear warheads on new missiles by deploying multiple reentry vehicles that have put Moscow over the limit set by the New START arms treaty, according to Pentagon officials.
A recent intelligence assessment of the Russian strategic warhead buildup shows that the increase is the result of the addition of multiple, independently targetable reentry vehicles, or MIRVs, on recently deployed road-mobile SS-27 and submarine-launched SS-N-32 missiles, said officials familiar with reports of the buildup.
“The Russians are doubling their warhead output,” said one official. “They will be exceeding the New START [arms treaty] levels because of MIRVing these new systems.”
The 2010 treaty requires the United States and Russia to reduce deployed warheads to 1,550 warheads by February 2018……..http://freebeacon.com/national-security/russia-doubling-nuclear-warheads/
Absence of Russia at nuclear security summit
Russia’s absence means nuclear summit likely to end in anticlimax for Obama
Signature policy initiative for the president is set to fall short of its goals as the state with the biggest nuclear arsenal stays away from the Washington meeting, IWhen Barack Obama welcomes more than 50 world leaders to Washington on Thursday ahead of his fourth and final nuclear security summit, one of the most important chairs will be empty.
Russia is thought to possess more nuclear weapons than any other country,including the US. Together the cold war foes share more than 90% of the world’s arsenal. So President Vladimir Putin’s decision to boycott the high-level talks threatens to turn them into an elaborate anticlimax, even as fears of nuclear terrorism are on the up……..
n an opinion column in the Washington Post on Wednesday, Obama argued that the US and Russia should negotiate to further reduce their nuclear stockpiles. “Our massive cold war nuclear arsenal is poorly suited to today’s threats,” he said. But the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, told Reuters that Russia was skipping the summit because of a “shortage of mutual cooperation” in working out the agenda……….
Jim Walsh, research associate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s security studies programme, said: “He deserves credit among the nuclear weapons states for being a leader trying to move things in the right direction. You can’t say that about anybody else.”
Assessing the legacy of the Prague speech, Walsh added: “Would you like to have cleared up all the nuclear materials? Of course. Was it realistic? Of course not. But we got a new start.”
Whoever succeeds Obama – and the prospect of Donald Trump gaining access to the nuclear codes fills some with dread – it is very possible that the issue will be less of a diplomatic priority for the next president. Walsh added: “I’m a fan of the summit process but over time the momentum has slowed. Among those attending there’s a bittersweet feeling this may be the last one for a while. It’s hard to build an international regime in six to eight years.” http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/31/nuclear-security-summit-obama-russia-absence
Russia marketing nuclear power to Bolivia
Bolivia Hopes to Gain Knowledge From Nuclear Deal With Russia, Sputnik News, 29 Mar 16, “……..Russia and Bolivia signed an agreement on peaceful nuclear cooperation in 2015. Rosatom and the Bolivian Hydrocarbon and Energy Ministry signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation for peaceful uses of nuclear energy in November. http://sputniknews.com/business/20160329/1037166194/bolivia0russia-rosatom-nuclear.html#ixzz44KHYmPUv
Russia funding and building new nuclear power station in Finland
Russian nuclear corporation to start construction of Hanhikivi NPP in Finland in 2017 http://tass.ru/en/economy/864293 NOVO-OGAREVO, March 22. /TASS/. Construction of the Hanhikivi 1 nuclear power plant in Finland to be implemented by the Russian nuclear corporation Rosatom will start in 2017. Such information is contained in materials for the working visit of Finland’s President Sauli Niinisto to Moscow.The power plant is expected to start generating electric power in 2024.
In December 2013, Rusatom Overseas [Rosatom’s subsidiary – TASS] and Finnish Fennovoima signed the contract for construction of Hanhikivi-1 nuclear power plant. Along with the construction contract, a ten-year fuel contract was signed with Russia’s company TVEL.
Russia’s revenues from the Hanhikivi-1 nuclear power plant project will amount to €17.5 bln , head of Rosatom Sergey Kiriyenko said earlier. Of this amount only taxes to the federal budget will exceed €3 bln, he added.
According to Finnish media, the project’s cost will reach €6-7 bln, of which €1.6 bln will be invested by Fennovoima and the rest by Rosatom. The commissioning of the new nuclear power plant is scheduled for 2024.
Rusatom Overseas is to supply 1,200Mt reactor for Hakhikivi-1.
NASA and Rosatom want nuclear rockets to take astronauts to Mars
Nasa wants to use nuclear rockets to get to Mars: Space agency claims the technique is ‘most effective way’ of reaching red planet
- Nuclear propulsion weighs almost half as much as a chemical rocket
- Nasa is also are planning to build rockets powered by nuclear fission
- They hope it could be used to carry astronauts to the red planet in 2033
- Follows news this week that Russia plans to test a nuclear engine in 2018
By ELLIE ZOLFAGHARIFARD FOR DAILYMAIL.COM
Nuclear thermal propulsion is ‘the most effective’ way of sending humans to Mars.
That’s according to Nasa administrator and former astronaut, Charles Bolden, who made the statement when speaking to Congress this week.
‘We are on a journey to Mars and most people believe that, in the end, nuclear thermal propulsion will be the most effective form of propulsion to get there,’ he said.
He didn’t, however, expand on details on how quickly Nasa hoped the technology could get astronauts to Mars. ……..’A nuclear power unit makes it possible to reach Mars in a matter of one to one and a half months, providing capability for manoeuvring and acceleration,’ Sergey Kirienko, head of Rosatom told RT . http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-3499441/Nasa-wants-use-nuclear-rockets-Mars-Space-agency-claims-technique-effective-way-reaching-red-planet.html
Russia to disarm huge aging nuclear ballistic missile submarine
Russia to disarm world’s largest nuclear ballistic missile submarine Rt.com 11 Mar, 2016 In 2016 Russia is set to disarm the missile system of the Typhoon-class Arkhangelsk submarine, the largest in the world. The disarmament will be carried out in accordance with the New START agreement between Moscow and Washington.
Working in accordance with the New START treaty between Russia and US, the country’s leading Zvezdochka shipyard in the northern Russian city of Severodvinsk will disarm the missile system of the Arkhangelsk submarine, the shipyard’s press service told TASS news agency on Friday.
“We will remove the covers of the submarine’s missile launchers and seal them, thus making it impossible to use the vessel’s missile weapons,” the press service said. “We are not talking yet about dismantling the submarine itself. The tender for this procedure has not yet been announced.”
According to the data published by the Russian nuclear agency Rosatom, the sub’s disarmament is estimated to cost some 28 million rubles (about US$ 400,000).
The nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine Arkhangelsk TK-17 was designed in 1987 under the Project 941 ‘Shark’ (or ‘Typhoon’ according to NATO classification). The project was aimed to equip the Soviet Navy with nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, and resulted in the creation of the largest class of submarines ever built – large enough to accommodate decent living facilities for the crew of 179 when submerged for months on end, and to stock an arsenal of 20 intercontinental ballistic missiles.
Three of the six Typhoon-class submarines built in the 1980s have already been dismantled at the shipyards in Severodvinsk. Of the three that remain, Arkhangelsk and Severstal are set to be dismantled. Dmitri Donskoi just recently underwent a modernization procedure and is now equipped to test the latest sea-based missile system Bulava.
The New START treaty (on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms), which was designed to reduce American and Russian nuclear stockpiles, came into force in 2011. It replaced the previous 1991 agreement, introducing lower ceilings for the numbers of warheads and delivery systems deployed……….https://www.rt.com/news/335300-russia-disarms-nuclear-sub/
Russia marketing nuclear reactors to Bolivia
Bolivia agrees $300 million nuclear complex with Russia’s Rosatom, Reuters, 6 Mar 16, LA PAZ Bolivia and Russia’s state-owned atomic energy corporation Rosatom said on Sunday they had signed a provisional agreement for the construction of $300 million nuclear complex in the Andean nation.
Under the terms of the accord, which needs to be approved by Bolivia’s Congress, Rosatom will help Bolivia develop infrastructure
for its embryonic nuclear program.
The center will include a research reactor, a cyclotron for radiopharmaceuticals and a multi-purpose gamma irradiation plant. Opposition politicians have criticized the project over fears of environmental risks……..http://www.reuters.com/article/us-bolivia-rosatom-idUSKCN0W80R3
Russia to test launch ballistic missiles from nuclear-powered submarines
Russia to Launch Massive Ballistic Missile Test From Nuclear SubsRussia and USA Pointing Nuclear Missiles at Asteroids – bonanza for Lockheed Martin etc
Why Is Russia Pointing Nuclear Missiles at Asteroids?Motley Fool 28 Feb 16
Surprise! Russia’s not the only one painting a bull’s-eye on space rocks. “…….Solid-fueled nuclear missiles, being on launch alert 24/7, are admirably suited for a last-minute launch to blast an asteroid before it turns into a meteor. Russia’s ICBMs aren’t currently programmed to aim at targets above the Earth, however, and will need to be repurposed for such missions. That’s what Russia hopes to do — and with Apophis swinging ’round in just over a decade, Russia thinks the asteroid makes a tempting target for testing its redesign.
Such an ambitious goal will cost money. Indeed, according to website DigitalTrends.com, “millions … in federal money is set to pour into detection efforts” over the coming years.National Defense magazine puts the number at at least $50 million annually, citing the recently passed fiscal year 2016 budget. This naturally raises the question in investors’ minds:
Who will get the loot?
ND identifies several likely suspects who could win these funds, including big defense contractors Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) and Raytheon (NYSE:RTN). Lockheed is the company in charge of building NASA’s Space Fence, designed to keep track of man-made junk orbiting Earth. Lockheed and Raytheon both bid on the contract in 2013 — but only Lockheed won it. Similarly, Lockheed Martin and Ball Aerospace (NYSE:BLL) helped to build NASA’s NEOWISE infrared telescope,specifically designed to detect and track NEOs.
Multiple historic contract wins in the field of space-object detection make Lockheed Martin a logical beneficiary of any new contracts coming out of the PDCO office. Granted, $50 million might not sound like much to a company like Lockheed (which pulled down $46 billion last year, and is NASA’s single biggest publicly traded contractor). It might seem even less significant, given that Lockheed won’t win all the contracts coming up for bid, and might have to share some of the loot with Raytheon, Ball, or others. But $50 million could be only the starting point.
ND calls $50 million “a drop in the bucket” compared to what it will ultimately cost to categorize all NEO threats, much less develop a means of defeating them. To cite just one example of contracts moving in that direction, in 2022, NASA aims to send a spaceship to asteroid 65803 Didymous in an ambitious experiment to try to push the object into a new orbit far from Earth’s own………http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/02/28/why-russia-pointing-nuclear-missiles-at-asteroids.aspx
Russia is offering bribes for Egypt to buy its nuclear reactors
Negotiations over establishment of Dabaa nuclear plant ongoing: Minister of Electricity, Daily News, Egypt, 21 Feb 16 Egyptian minister of Electricity and Renewable Energy, Mohamed Shaker, said the ministry is still negotiating with Russia’s Rosatom over technical, financial, and technological agreements to establish the first Egyptian nuclear power plant in the Dabaa area.
He told Daily News Egypt the Russian offer has better features than other offers from French, Chinese, and Korean companies. The offer includes providing nuclear fuel supply to the nuclear power plant throughout its operating period, which is estimated to be 60 years. In addition, it will be responsible for the management of spent nuclear fuel, operation and maintenance, and training human resources……http://www.dailynewsegypt.com/2016/02/21/negotiations-over-establishment-of-dabaa-nuclear-plant-ongoing-minister-of-electricity/
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