Scientist: Objective reasons behind the need to develop nuclear power engineering

The development of nuclear power engineering will continue and there are fundamental reasons that will make it happen. The opinion was voiced by Professor Rafael Arutyunyan, Deputy Director for Science and Promising Research Coordination of the Nuclear Safety Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, during the online conference hosted by the BelTA website on 25 April to discuss nuclear energy prospects.

According to the source, organic heat transfer agents cannot be used to provide the mankind with energy in an environmentally friendly manner. “Even with the present number of people living on the Earth the use of heat-based power engineering for other countries to reach electricity consumption levels on par with developed nations would result in an absolutely unacceptable scale of ecological problems,” stressed the prominent Russian scientist.

In view of the risks relating to global warming due to the man-caused factor nuclear technology is the only one able to satisfy the basic demand of the mankind for electricity, Rafael Arutyunyan is convinced.

Construction workers started pouring concrete into the foundation of the facilities that will make up the first power-generating unit of the Belarusian nuclear power plant at the Ostrovets site in November 2013. The Belarusian nuclear power plant will boast two power-generating units with the total generating capacity of up to 2,400MW (1,200MW each). The Russian design AES-2006 has been chosen to build the power plant. The design is fully compliant with international standards and IAEA recommendations. The Russian merged company OAO NIAEP – ZAO Atomstroyexport (ASE) is the general designer and the general contractor for building the power plant. The timeline for implementing the project is stipulated by the general contract. The first power-generating unit of the nuclear power plant is scheduled for launch in November 2018.

As of early April 2014 as much as 5% of the total work required to build the Belarusian nuclear power plant was completed.