Transformation of Russian nuclear industry

The past decade has been transformative for the Russian nuclear industry like no other, reads the article by Gary Peach dedicated to the 10th anniversary of Sergei Kiriyenko's stay at the helm of the Russian nuclear industry. The article summing up the results of the past decade for the Russian nuclear industry has been published in Nuclear Intelligence Weekly (annex to Energy Intelligence).

The author draws attention to the major achievements of the industry ranging from solving the problem of the Soviet nuclear heritage to obtaining the status of one of the leading players on the world uranium market to developing the ten-year foreign orders portfolio in excess of $100 billion.

Gary Peach says that thanks to Kiriyenko’s competent management and Vladimir Putin’s unshakable trust in him, Rosatom has made impressive headway. The author is confident that there is more to come. Taking into account the almost double downfall in oil prices in comparison with previous years and the forecasts that predict them to stay at the current level through 2020, Rosatom, a recipient of multi-billion subsidies, should reach new heights of efficiency if it aims to transform from a consumer of budgetary resources into an example of proper state corporate management.

Gary Peach states that Russia can use a closed fuel cycle thanks to new fuel processing companies and companies producing uranium and plutonium oxide fuel blends. The program to dismantle hundreds of dangerous Soviet-time nuclear power submarines is almost complete. The Bushehr nuclear power plant in Iran was put into operation despite unfavorable conditions and financial losses. The High-Power Channel-Type Reactor Park received a second lease of life due to a unique technology of restoring the life characteristics of graphite.

Nikolai Kosarev, a member of the Economic Policy Committee of the Federation Council, told journalists that the nuclear industry in Russia objectively depends on the general situation in the country. If the consumption of energy increases, the demand for nuclear energy grows. The construction of nuclear power plants is generally known to be very costly. However, they rapidly earn their keep due to the long operating lifetime (modern power generation units can be operational for up to 60-80 years) and the low cost of fuel in comparison with the price for a kilowatt-hour of generated power. This is relevant to the whole world. However, the effectiveness of management in a certain company affects the indicators of nuclear power production in a particular region.

Over the last ten years, Russia’s nuclear power industry in general has been demonstrating positive results despite some objective difficulties. The output of Russian nuclear power plants has increased by 20%, from 147.6 billion kWh in 2005 to record-breaking 180.5 billion kWh in 2014. The positive trend is expected to continue. The installed capacity factor of the NPP increased from 73.4% in 2005 to 81.6% in 2014. This year it is expected to make up about 85%, which is the level of the best foreign nuclear power plants. The labor productivity at Rosenergoatom which operates all Russian NPPs has risen by almost 40% since 2005.

It is also worth saying that Rosatom prioritizes security. Over the past 16 years Russian NPPs have not had any incidents above level one on the International Nuclear Event Scale (INES).

In my opinion, these are the signs of the efficient management in the industry. The efforts of Rosatom executives to create an efficient system able to respond to modern challenges by combining knowledge, experience, and professionalism are a success.