Kazakhstan to hold int'l tender if nuclear plant project goes ahead - minister
ASTANA. May 24 (Interfax) - Kazakhstan will carry out an international tender in the event of a decision to build a nuclear power plant, Energy Minister Kanat Bozumbayev said.
"Even if this decision to build any nuclear power plant is made an international tender will be announced," Bozumbayev said at a meeting of the Public Council on Tuesday in Astana.
He said a decision whether to build or not to build the power plant was postponed for a year by a government energy development commission.
Without politicizing this issue the ministry will consider everything together with the Public Council so that then nobody reproaches it for the decision.
"Kazakhstan's scientists and Kazatomprom's staff are sufficiently skilled to make a right choice. Let's wait until the end of the year and there will be some sort of understanding early next year," Bozumbayev said.
In February, a summary of the 2015 results of the Energy Ministry's activities reported that the government would prepare a draft decision in 2017 on construction of the nuclear power plant. In 2015, it prepared a technical assignment for the feasibility study for the nuclear power station to be built near the town of Kurchatov and in the settlement of Ulken of Almaty region.
"Jointly with the state bodies concerned, Kazakhstan conducted comprehensive negotiations with Rosatom representatives concerning the text of the agreement; consultations continue at the current time on agreeing the draft contract with the Russian side concerning sale of the electricity and supplies of fuel. In connection with the Russian side's decision not to buy electricity from the future NPP, the need to work through the issue of sales of electricity from the NPP has arisen," the ministry said.
In order to determine a potential supplier, and a selection of the reactor type for installation near the Lake of Balkhash, meetings were conducted with representatives of the Japanese Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry, the Kazakh ministry said at the time. The Japanese proposed to construct the nuclear power plant using an AP-1000 reactor (two-loop pressurized water reactor) developed by Westinghouse Electric.
At the same time it was reported that China General Nuclear Power Corporation is also interested in cooperation with Kazakhstan over the nuclear power plant project.
For the first time, plans to build a nuclear power plant in Kazakhstan (then it was to be built near the Lake of Balkhash) were announced in 1998. However, these plans were perceived very negatively in Kazakhstan and this project was actually scrapped.
In November 2006, the Kazakh government decided to build a nuclear power plant in Mangistau region ten kilometers away from Aktau (the administrative center of the region) on the site of the former atomic energy complex (MAEK). Currently this facility is decomissioned, fuel is being disposed of. In 2003 the government handed over MAEK to National Atomic company Kazatomprom. At the time it was decided to build the nuclear plant on the basis of medium nuclear power Russian or European-made reactors.
Russian specialists had to complete a feasibility study in 2009, but Kazakhstan suspended the project in February 2009 until issues related to the transfer of intellectual property were resolved. Then the town of Kurchatov situated at the former Semiplalatinsk nuclear test range was added to the list of possible construction venues.
At the end of May 2014, Russia and Kazakhstan signed a memorandum of understanding to build the nuclear power plant in Kurchatov. The project envisaged the construction of the nuclear power plants with VVER reactors with the installed capacity from 300 MW to 1,200 MW. The parties also intended to cooperate to supply the nuclear power plant with nuclear fuel so that it or its components are produced in Kazakhstan, according to the document.
