MINSK, 22 March (BelTA) – According to the estimates of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, the commissioning of the nuclear power plant will help reduce the prime cost of electric energy by about 20% provided gas prices remain unchanged. The import of natural gas will reduce by 4-5 billion cubic meters per year, Director of the Nuclear Energy Department of the Energy Ministry of the Republic of Belarus Nikolai Grusha said on 22 March during an online conference on the BelTA website.
An analysis has revealed that fuel accounts for 12% to 25% of the prime cost of electric energy generated by nuclear power plants worldwide, of which natural uranium makes up 2-3% of the prime cost, while at conventional power plants the figure stands at about 70%. Thus, the price rise for uranium (it accounts for 8-10% of the fuel) will not lead to a considerable increase in rates, like it happens in the case of price rise for fossil fuels.
In line with the Belarus-Russia intergovernmental cooperation agreement on the construction of the nuclear power plant in Belarus, spent nuclear fuel purchased from Russia will be returned to Russia for recycling on the conditions formalized by a separate agreement.
