«Cooperation of the USSR (Russia) with foreign … 20 «The laser method of uranium enrichment...
Transcript of «Cooperation of the USSR (Russia) with foreign … 20 «The laser method of uranium enrichment...
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Pavel Ptitsyn (TENEX, Russia)
«Cooperation of the USSR (Russia) with foreign
countries as a historical example of the integrated
approach and the responsibility of the Supplier of nuclear
technology & services»
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«The new is well forgotten old»
Retrospective analysis will:
• eliminate the repetition of past errors,
• identify the underlying causes of the
current problems,
• evaluate the old ideas with modern
achievements in science and technology,
• verify possible solutions for the future.
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Reasons for retro
Tenerife-Madeira-Barbate-
Gibraltar-Marbella-Malaga
(April 2015, ~ 2000 km in the
ocean under sail)
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Archives
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The USSR on the world nuclear market
JSC «Techsnabexport»
• uranium enrichment services,
• delivery of the equipment, rare metals,
isotope products.
The main partners in the 70s-80s:
Western Europe
JSC «Atomstroyexport»
• the construction of power plants on a
turn-key basis,
• complete deliveries of fuel assemblies,
• staff training.
The main partners in the 70s-80s:
COMECON
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Pricing
The thesis from the archive of TENEX:
«Historically developed Western countries had proposed to export their
supplies and services in the field of atomic energy and nuclear fuel cycle
before the others. In this regard, for pricing Soviet organizations must
focus on world markets controlled by the West».
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Prices for reprocessing
16, 85
$/kg - price for reprocessing, which was
formed and published by the United
States Atomic Energy Commission
(AEC) on the «cover expenses» method
dated 1962.
40 early 70s
120-140 1975
300-350 (550-600 vitrification) 1978
750 1981
from 1100 (depending on services) 80s
United Reprocessors
GmbH
Deutsche Gesellschaft für
Wiederaufarbeitung von
Kernbrennstoffen mbH
(DWK)
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The ideological divide
Reprocessing Direct disposal
Long-term storage with «postponed decision»
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Reprocessing as the hit in charts
The Customer is responsible for:
• capital costs,
• operating costs (in proportion),
• additional bonus to the Reprocessor,
• separate payment for storage/treatment with
regenerated products,
• separate payment for the storage of RW,
• separate payment for transportation through third
companies,
• penalties for violations of the terms
+ obligations on the State level !
The Customer:
• does not involved in property,
• does not get access to
technology/training,
• practically does not participate
in management,
• «stay alone» with final disposal
RW and utilization of
regenerated products.
Order
~ 7200 tHm
Order
~ 4000 tHm
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BE to FE
+ active appeals to add the line of reprocessing services some orders in the front
end, especially on the enrichment market…
full services from the mining of uranium concentrate to reprocessing
and MOX.
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The underground facility at Yucca
Mountain – for disposal of SF
exclusively of national origin.
On the external market US-partner
countries are obliged to stay on
reprocessing ban without a prior
agreement with the United States
concerning any actions with nuclear
material, technology or equipment of
the American code of obligations.
US and US-partners
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BE in 80s
Regatta in WEurope...
Calm in the US.
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Document structure and procedures of the COMECON
Bohunice NPP
Kozloduy NPP
Paks NPP Loviisa NPP
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Dukovany NPP
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Comparison of basic conditions for cooperation
in creating nuclear units
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The Technology Supplier:
• covers CAPEX through a long-term loan of 20-25
years at low interest,
• covers advanced payments for the first load of
nuclear fuel,
• provides the Customer with integrated approach:
NPP, front-end, SNF,
• train personnel,
• ensures fulfillment of obligations on nuclear
security,
• ensures fulfillment of obligations under the NPT.
The Customer:
• gets unit in the own property,
• gets the access to
technology/training,
• has own management,
• has no problems with the NFC.
19 NPPs
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Comparing of the structure of prices for VVER and PWR fuel
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Geography and scope of SNF shipments
in Soviet and post-Soviet period
ГДР ЧССР
(Словакия)
Финляндия Венгрия Болгария Украина Армения
290
100
346231
1373
392287
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Transportation of spent fuel
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Over the past thirty years of activity of the Russian
enterprises on the market, there has not been a single case
of any unforeseen situations that threaten a nuclear
incident.
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Responsibility of the Technology Supplier
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The Soviet approach for the development of international
cooperation in the field of AE was and remains the only
historical example of real and full responsibility of the
Technology Supplier.
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Collapse of the USSR and the COMECON
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All the obstacles (political, institutional and financial) appeared at the
stage of global political change.
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Forecasting
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«The laser method of uranium enrichment technology (ALVIS) will
allow DOE to provide uranium enrichment services at costs ~ $60/SWU
in 2000»
Deputy Assistant Secretary of the DOE Mr John R. Longenecker
(«Nuclear fuel», 23/11/1986).
«The IAEA's programme to establish international and
regional fuel centers of international stores of plutonium
and spent fuel deserves the attention».
(newspaper «PRAVDA», 11/08/1980).
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FE & BE have the same genealogy from national military programm, so:
• practical scientific and technological development was initiated, and in many
ways still adapted in line with military technology aimed primarily at
extraction of high pure special fissile materials, rather than search for
commercially viable or environmentally defensible decisions;
• there are roughly similar and interrelated with FE and reactor stages a range
of participants (national authorities, commercial organizations, scientific
institutions, etc);
• examples of practical cycling and the transfer of NM of various applications
blur the boundaries between FE and BE.
Front End & Back End
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• a much greater degree of Government Regulation: concepts and approaches
in the field of the treatment of spent fuel and radioactive waste are determined
at the national level by States and not by energy companies;
• while much of the States so far undecided what will be the final method of
SNF treatment (disposal/recycling) it is hard to form the optimum composition
of the products and services in BE for the relevant markets;
• there is a specific domination of the non-proliferation regime of NM
(primarily of plutonium) over economic or technological solutions;
Basic differences FE and BE
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• the use of the materials, recovered from the recycling of SNF, is not clear in
the near future as the backbone of the world AE make up units with reactors on
thermal neutrons, mostly using available natural uranium;
• there is no strict time limits for solving the problem of the final handling of
spent fuel and radioactive waste: BE comes after the profit stage from the sale
of electricity.
Basic differences FE and BE
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• the lack of a single market, with its special signs: no exchange of commercial
information via the quotes of products and services, producers of goods and
services in BE for the most part focused on the domestic market, the proportion
of international cooperation is seriously below in comparison to the initial phase
of NFC;
• the capital cost of the creation of industrial capacities in BE or
decommissioning of NPPs is comparable with the cost of building new power
plants that could be secured only by TNCs or natural state monopolies even if
the functioning of special funds is formed;
• the lack of a common and easily understood methodology for calculating the
costs of BE (discounting in the horizon for future periods, uranium-plutonium
credits, a different relationship to the decommissioning of units, hidden form of
subsidies and so on), the result is a diversity and divergence of comparative
economic evaluations on alternative approaches to handling spent fuel, RW and
decommissioning totally.
Features of BE Economics
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• the lack of a unified approach and a uniform technological policy;
• the current emphasis on reducing (minimization) RW more than to extract
nuclear materials;
• country initiatives for improvement/modernization of existing technologies
(or individual elements of the technology) without their radical revision;
• the loss of skilled human resources and scientific schools;
• the emergence of technological problems, even in the case of intermediate
decisions (for example, wet spent fuel storage).
Features of BE Technologies
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• formed the postulate of the responsibility of the State as a subject of rights
without corresponding return obligations of supra-national structures (f.ex,
Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management and on the Safety of
Radioactive Waste Management, Council Directive 2011/70/Euroatom);
• the ambiguity of approach when BE decisions often have to be passed
through a system of special authorities or funds (existing on contributions from
operating organizations!), that is legally independent and does not have the
intention for the early practical solutions for spent fuel and radioactive waste;
Features of BE legislation
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• the heterogeneity of the requirements of domestic legislation of individual
countries in terms of international cooperation in the field of BE and the lack of
a complete consolidated legal analysis on the opportunities and limitations for
certain specialized market segments.
As a result, attempts to create a universal approach on the part of individual
participant or the special internal national legislation ended unsuccessfully due
to external legal restrictions.
Features of BE legislation
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! The BE as the stage and SNF as a product
have a number of objectively inherent features
that often can be used in different ways.
! The lack of uniform technological policy,
transparent economy and generally accepted
international legal field only exacerbates these
peculiarities and makes them the system
problem.
! As a result, the continued accumulation of
SNF is a potential threat to global security and
has a negative impact on public opinion in
respect of any nuclear technology.
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Current trends
• The SNF storage in major nuclear countries is exercised without any
definite plans on the final solution;
• There is an on-going public discussion on correctness of the previously
adopted decisions;
• Updating currently used technologies;
• There are troubles with the construction of large-scale industrial sites for the
SNF management.
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The difficulty and even inconsistency of
attempts to resolve such large-scale projects
on a national level.
! Strategy of direct disposal and recycling does not
necessarily have to be competitive.
! Fairness: «Problems should be resolved where
they accumulate». Most of the SF is stored in the
USA and W.Europe (about 80% of the world`s
inventory).
! Accordingly, a regional principle aimed at the
interests of the neighboring countries and their
plans for the development of AE.
! The laws and regulations are not the biblical
doctrines and if the prohibitions and regulations
do not help to overcome the problem, then we
should not try to still adapt practices under them,
but rather to change the legal and institutional
system.
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Scenario 1. The Association of countries around
regional/technology leaders
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Scenario 2. Search for strong political motivation.
Convergence IFNEC and INPRO
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United States initiated a series of global international program (Generation-IV in 2002, GNEP in 2006, IFNEC), designed to demonstrate the ability to meet the challenges of non-proliferation and disposal of spent fuel and radioactive waste through new innovative nuclear energy system.
Obvious goal is the need to find a long-term and socially-acceptable solution to the
problems of the final stage of the NFC through: (a) the modification of the current
NFC with an existing NPPs on thermal neutrons and/or b) creating new
NES=NPP+NFC
Interstate associations with system
attributes on the format of the
ITER project.
Scenario 3. Creating of specialized organization
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• work on new forms of involvement of
regenerated materials in a cycle (MOX for
FB, REMIX, etc.),
• regional/technology partnerships in the field
of reprocessing of SF,
• using Soviet experience of complex support
of Customer for NPPs of Russian design
with full NFC services.
Scenario 1 in detail. The place of Russia
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With the participation of Russia and the United States under the
auspices of the IAEA the long-term programme of repatriation of
HEU fuel & SF from research reactors of 14 countries was
successfully implemented .
Scenario 2 in detail. SF RR
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Not only the list of achievements, but also the analysis
of failures can equally contribute to future decision
problems.
Faults recognition
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Relationship innovation
«We have profoundly forgotten everywhere that cash-payment is not the sole
relation of human beings»
Thomas Carlyle «Past and Present»
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Relationship innovation
«It expresses as well as anything the salient characteristics of the eastern worldview. It is a non-
confrontational rig, soft, relenting. It absorbs rather than resists. It turns the other cheek, feinting
gently away, while calmly appropriating the forces directed against it. It advances quietly, without
thrash or bang... The contrast with the bar-taut, hard-edged and, until recently, cumbersome rigs
of the West is as good a metaphor as any for the great divide between the eastern and the western
psyche. The modern occidental rig seems to set itself up in opposition to natural forces. It attacks
them, brutally. Its aim is to overcome them rather than to work with them. The principle is to
create ever stronger materials then stress them to the limit in a triumph of myopic engineering
machismo. It is a hotbed of high tension. Every bit of kit is wound up to within a fraction of its
breaking point».
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Roger D. Taylor «The art of minimal ocean sailing»
Mentality innovatoin
Possible topics for collaborative investigations:
• the creation of summary statistical reporting and common methodology for
verified economic assessments;
• the description of national systems for the delineation of responsibilities between
the operator, the national authorities and the special fund;
• the establishment of a register of national legislation (with links to key
documents).
• open and informal discussion of the issue in a professional environment;
• recognition of strategic errors;
• feeling a single industry, waiver of competitive mentality;
• using the best practices.
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The choice of action scenario (!)
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Team!
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The Winners of «The Victory Day Cup».
Regatta «Sea Wind» (May 2015, France)
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