ENVIRONMENT-ARMENIA: Mothballed Nuclear Plant Causing Concern

By IPS Correspondents Reprint | | Print |

Judith Perera

LONDON, Feb 22 1995 (IPS) - Armenia’s nuclear power plant at Metsamor is planned to restart operations in June or July despite the concern of environmentalists who fear the that technicians did not properly maintain the plant during the five years it has been mothballed.

The plant was closed in 1989 after the severe earthquake of December 1988 but in face of power shortages the government decided to restart the plant beginning with Unit 2, a VVER-440 reactor originally commissioned in 1980.

“The restart of the Metsamor reactors would be an environmental disaster,” says Antony Froggatt of Greenpeace. “Restarting the reactor after five years without proper mothballing or maintenance will put a strain on systems which could lead to a disaster similar to Chernobyl.”

Froggatt said it also indicates the inadequacy of Western initiatives to support energy production in Armenia.

Instead of funding safer, but more expensive, alternatives to Metsamor, Armenia went cap in hand to Russian and Armenian sources abroad to scrape together 35 million dollars to restart the plant.

The June-July start date was postponed from April because the necessary upgrading work is not yet complete, Armenian Energy and Fuel Minister Miron Shishmanyan told IPS in Moscow.

Finance for the upgrading has come from Russia and from the widespread and wealthy Armenian diaspora abroad, as well as from the hard-pressed Armenian government. According to George Kay of Medzamor Associates Armenians living abroad have lent or donated 35 million to support the work.

Last September Armenia signed a protocol with Russia to prepare the plant’s Unit 2 for operation in 1995. Russia gave Armenia a substantial loan as well as providing fuel, technical assistance and parts.

Russia’s Deputy Minister of Atomic Power, Lev Ryabev, said at the time that the aim was to get the plant operating again by the first quarter of 1995.

Previous plans to get the plant started by December 1994 had been revised because the Armenian government was unable to find the necessary funding.

Only 15 percent of the required amount had been made available by mid-1994, says Edward Saakov, Chief Engineer of ‘Atomtekhenergo’, the Russian company which was responsible for decommissioning the plant in 1989 and is now the lead contractor for its rehabilitation.

Some work was being done by the company unpaid in the hope of receiving payments later. “But we couldn’t buy the equipment we needed on this basis,” he explains.

Most of the work is taking place in the reactor hall. This includes metal tests and checks on other equipment including the reactor itself, pumps, separators, steam generators and turbines. Testing of electrical equipment on Unit 2 has been completed.

The part of the system which continued to work to maintain ventilation and cooling have undergone a second set of tests.

Some equipment needs replacing because of ageing but in general the tests on metal and pipe work shows the high quality of the work carried out five years ago when the plant was shut down, Saakov told IPS.

He notes that levels of seismological protection and general safety were higher than in many similar stations. For example the plant has a good emergency power supply and an additional coolant system for the second circuit.

“It would be difficult to overestimate the value of the experience we have gained during this operation, Saakov insists.

Cooperation with Russia is based on an agreement signed in March 1994 which set up an inter-government committee including the Russian Nuclear Energy Ministry, Russian nuclear power plant operator Gosatomnadzor, the Armenian Energy Ministry and the Armenian Council of Ministers’ state directorate for the supervision of nuclear energy.

The committee assumed responsibility for full site investigation, improving safety, restoring reactors to full power, instituting a full programme for technical training, engineering and documentation, setting up a regulatory body, and supplying fuel.

Customs duties were waived on equipment and goods brought in from Russia and unimpeded travel granted for Russian specialists and their families.

Even though the French company Framatome conducted a feasibility study at end of 1993 concluding there were no technical impediments to restarting the plant Armenia has had to depend almost completely on Russia as no Western bodies would provide financial support.

In mid-August, however, a delegation from the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO) visited the plant to assess progress.

Armenia subsequently joined WANO which noted that additional finance would be required, especially to improve control and instrumentation systems and computer equipment. The IAEA has also inspected the plant and offered qualified support for its restart.

Western finance seems unlikely, however, as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in particular is opposed to the restart of the plant. The Bank is in a very difficult position.

In 1993 it allocated 59.4 million for energy in Armenia on the strict condition that this should not be used for Metsamor but it has not way of monitoring this.

The plant’s history before its closure in 1989 was not without problems with a serious accident in 1982. One reactor developed a bubble of hydrogen which led to a big fire in the machine room causing most of the staff to leave in panic.

The situation was brought under control only an emergency team was flown in from the Kola nuclear power plant in Russia. The team managed to prevent an explosion. Even after its closure there were several pre-accident situations at the plant when power was cut off to the ventilation systems cooling spent fuel.

Power cuts have become a way of life in Armenia since Metsamor was closed with heating and lighting rationed even in mid-winter. Residents of Yerevan receive power for only two hours a day.

Restarting the plant will increase annual electricity production by 40 percent and give the people of Yerevan power for 10-12 hours a day.