Nuclear power slowdown could to boost gas use - Shmatko
MOSCOW. March 30 (Interfax) - The fate at which the nuclear power industry is growing could slow as the result of the Fukushima disaster in Japan, Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko told reporters.
"The rate at which nuclear power grows will likely differ a little from what has been planned because we see the necessity to review some areas with regard to safety," Shmatko said.
The government is not abandoning its goal of generating a quarter of the country's electricity at nuclear plants compared with 16% at present, but the timeframe for new construction could increase, he said.
"And gas-fired power generation will probably grow more quickly than we have planned," Shmatko said, adding that this opinion also reflected closer attention towards gas generation on the part of investors.