September 13, 2014

Bohdan Sokolovskyi: The Kremlin's Main Threats to Ukraine's Energy Sector 2

Part 2. Electric Energy Industry

In the electric energy industry and energetics in general, the most dependent on monopoly imports is nuclear power industry.

Objective data:

Nuclear power plants produce 47-50% of the country's electricity. The remaining energy is produced by those electric power plants, about 90% of which work on coal or gas. A lot can be said about these plants. But in short, in the context of this article, these power plants can be relatively easily made fully independent of the exclusive raw material imports. This has already been partially fulfilled or is being fulfilled by switching from gas to coal. As we don't have enough of our own coal (due to the aggression of the Russian Federation), it is planned to import some coal from South-East Asia, Africa, and Australia. In a word, from countries selling coal the cheapest at international markets. Of course, this requires money. But there is war! And it was not Ukraine who started it. And no price for coal can be compared with the price of lives of our fellow citizens, defending the territorial integrity of Ukraine, — their lives are priceless!

Today in Ukraine at the four operating nuclear power plants operate 13 nuclear reactors ВВЭР-1000 and 2 – ВВЭР-440
Today in Ukraine at the four operating nuclear power plants operate 13 nuclear reactors ВВЭР-1000 and 2 – ВВЭР-440
http://www.npp.zp.ua/

Today in Ukraine at the four operating nuclear power plants (South-Ukrainian, Zaporizhzhya, Khmelnytskyi and Rivne NPP) operate 13 nuclear reactors ВВЭР-1000 and 2 — ВВЭР-440. All of them are Russian (Soviet) design. For many years, there had been more ВВЭР-1000 reactors in Ukraine than anywhere else, the Russian Federation included. Operation of almost all components of Ukrainian NPPs depends on Russia. Including scientific and technical support, repair, extension of the time of operation, supply of nuclear fuel (NF), storage and processing of irradiated (spent) nuclear fuel, etc. On each of these directions we need to urgently work with Western partners. So far, we do work only on the problem of nuclear fuel.

 

A little bit more about this.

Nuclear fuel
Nuclear fuel: the energy release of one 4.5 g tablet is equivalent to 640 kg of wood, 400 kg of coal, 360 cubic meters of gas, 350 kg of oil
http://nnm.me/

The world knows 2 companies capable of producing similar nuclear fuel for Russian reactors: in Sweden and in Spain (both owned by the Swedish-Japanese-American company Westinghouse). We have been getting nuclear fuel from Westinghouse's plant for more than six years, for experiments of its adaptation to the Russian NF on two blocks of the South-Ukrainian NPP. But with the Spanish company we have not been cooperating yet. At least, there have been no open reports about such cooperation. Although recently, as it became known to the author of these lines, has been signed a bilateral document between Westinghouse and Energoatom which suggests to use this company too in the production of NF for ВВЭР-440 reactors. It should be noted the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Finland and, of course, Ukraine can also show interest in it.

The company Westinghouse, as it turned out uses the services of Rosatom. And in the contract there is no clear definition about what the Ukrainian side should expect in case of termination of the provision of services by the Russian side due to the so-called force majeure situation in the Russian Federation (Moscow always interprets it as it wills). But remembering of who is the company's founder, the Ukrainian side should not worry, because in those countries there is no problem with discipline. Our agreeing to Russia's services in uranium enrichment is due to the lower price than the one offered by other available contractors. All this once again suggests that the Ukrainian side should enlist the support of the German-Dutch company URENCO in the matter of uranium enrichment for the company Westinghouse in volumes Ukraine needs. At the same time, it would be more appropriate for the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine to oblige VostGOK immediately, within the shortest possible period of time, to increase production of uranium concentrate to the volumes needed for Ukrainian NPPs. As of today, in spite of adequate stocks, we produce a little more than 30% of the needed volumes. At the appropriate level we should also maintain constant work for buying uranium concentrate at international markets. There is also an urgent need for conclusion of contracts with Western partners to extend the life of existing units, in particular concerning the annealing of vessels. Also, among other things, we need to sign contracts with domestic enterprises for production of equipment and spare parts for atomic units. After all, our nuclear industry always focused on Russian, not on the domestic industry.

Westinghouse will prolong the contract for the supply of nuclear fuel for Ukrainian nuclear power plants
Westinghouse will prolong the contract for the supply of nuclear fuel for Ukrainian nuclear power plants. Negotiations with the Ukrainian "Energoatom" may be completed next week,  the contract ending in 2015 may be extended for an unlimited time
http://www.vedomosti.ru/

We should remember that if the Kremlin has decided (which is quite possible in the current situation of war) to suspend deliveries of nuclear fuel to Ukraine, no one will be able to prevent this. And a maximum in one year (if we reload all the reactors with new nuclear fuel), the whole nuclear power system in Ukraine will stop. This means that almost half of the electricity will be lost, that the country will face a total collapse (of course, if we fail to prepare for it). The basis of such preparation is a thorough inventory. First of all, we need to carefully determine which of consumers cannot be cut off the line (like hospitals, those businesses that due to the lack of electricity can fail, lifts, etc.). That is, the Russian Federation, without applying new combat schemes in the so-called “hybrid war”, without spending a single ruble for its army, militants and weapons, without incurring losses in manpower, without losing rapidly its international authority and without suffering from the West's economic sanctions, can “bring Ukraine to its knees”.

If well in advance (through democratic NATO member countries) we get prepared for the stop of nuclear energy system, the problem can be “softened”. In a peaceful world it cannot be solved within a year. For example, to replace the electricity produced at the nuclear plants is needed round the clock work of more than 2 million of 5- kilowatt generators. There are no so many free (available) generators in the whole world! Not to mention the rest, in particular, the environmental impact from fuel combustion. In reality the problem can be solved within 5-6 years in a peaceful world. Of course, in war, these terms would be smaller (with many costs), but, as they say, not zero ones.

The idea that “the Kremlin can be pressed on through unservicing Russian machinery, in particular, at Ukrainian plants “Zaporіzhsіch”, “Hartron”, “Pivdenmash” and so on, is interesting, but not consistent. Unfortunately, due to some objective and subjective reasons, and in particular, because of the elementary betrayal. Now the Russian equipment, including military, is serviced only because here it is cheaper than even in the Russian Federation or China. At any time, Russia may refuse from our services. Sadly, it can be serviced outside Ukraine.

Taking into consideration all these facts, one unwittingly comes to the conclusion that the Russian Federation's attack at Ukraine, is actually, mastering, first of all, of new combat and financial schemes for real aggression, gathering and training of fighters, testing of weapons (both, old and new) in a the so-called “hybrid war”, etc. And most importantly it keeps “in tune” its regular army. So, the RF is so active not only or not so much in order to win Ukraine, but... But what for then? THE ENTIRE DEMOCTARIC WIRLD MUST THINK ABOUT THE ANSWER TO THIS QUESTION. And especially Europe.

CANDU reactor
CANDU reactor is currently the only one heavy-water reactor. Only CANDU reactors can now run on natural uranium, without the need for any complicated processes for the separation of uranium isotopes
http://crustgroup.livejournal.com/

But in any case, we need to develop our nuclear power industry. But simultaneously we should abandon monopoly dependence on the Russian Federation. The most promising for us partners are Canada and France, successfully developing the third generation reactors EC-6 (CANDU) and APR-1650, respectively. It is important that these reactors can operate successfully not only on natural uranium, but also “burn” the gained in ВВЭР in Ukraine uranium-plutonium oxide, isolated (more than 60 tons) during the reprocessing of irradiated (spent) NF, which is very important to support the regime of non-proliferation. Moreover, the EС-6 reactor (CANDU) could potentially use uranium-plutonium oxide isolated from РБMK-1000 reactors of Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant (almost 7 tons).

CANDU reactors are successfully operating in Canada, South Korea, India, Argentina, China and Romania. For us extremely interesting is the many-year experience of neighboring Romania.

It is this type of reactors that once, when he was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, recommended the current Prime Minister of Ukraine. Maybe we should seriously consider a phased replacement of Russian technologies with Canadian ones (gradually, as they end their life). Or at least we should resort to reasonable diversification. We cannot say that Russian technologies are worse or better. They are just different. And they do not suit us due to their, so to speak, being monopolized.

EC-6 reactor was studied in detail in 2008-2009 by the Ukrainian Inter-agency Group, which included, in particular, experts from the NAEC “Energoatom”, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and others. As a result, the reactor according to all indicators was recommended to be used in the Ukrainian energy sector. In the same way it would be wise to study the French EPR-1650 reactor, the owner of which provides also services of reprocessing of irradiated nuclear fuel, and producing from it of modern MOX fuel for “burning” plutonium to produce electricity. It is noteworthy that the reactor EPR-1650 can be delivered by water to the Southern-Ukrainian and Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plants to replace Russian reactors.

At this, it should be remembered that nuclear power has been and remains an important element of national security of Ukraine.