14 Jul (NucNet): Russia and Argentina have signed a bilateral agreement that could lead to Russia building two nuclear power reactors in Argentina, a statement said.
The statement, released by the office of the president of Argentina, Cristina Fernández, said agreements were signed between the two countries in the field of nuclear energy, judicial cooperation and communication.
The nuclear agreement was based on non-proliferation, the statement said.
Russia’s energy minister, Alexander Novak, said Russian state atomic energy corporation, Rosatom, had made an offer to tender for the construction of two new nuclear power units in Argentina and the tender would probably take place this autumn.
He said Rosatom could offer “comfortable” financial terms to Argentina. He said: ”Rosatom is working here and has already handed over its technical and commercial offer [for the reactors] to our [Argentine] colleagues.
In August 2006, Argentina took an important step towards reviving its nuclear energy development programme by announcing a major nuclear initiative worth 3.5 billion US dollars (2.5 million euros) over eight years.
Argentina is finishing its third nuclear reactor unit (Atucha-2) and extending the life of the single-unit Embalse nuclear plant by 25 years.
The plan also calls for the construction of a Carem (Central Argentina de Elementos Modulares) reactor using technology indigenously developed by the National Atomic Energy Commission (CNEA); increased production of heavy water at the Arroyito plant; and revival of uranium enrichment at the Pilcaniyeu plant.
In November 2009, the Senate approved the construction of a fourth nuclear plant. Argentina was planning to equip this plant with a Candu reactor to be supplied by Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, but because of concerns about AECL's privatisation, the Argentine government decided to consider other suppliers. According to the Washington-based Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) Argentina is also seeking to diversify its nuclear technology and is considering a reactor that would be fueled by low enriched uranium.
The NTI said Argentina has been talking also with reactor vendors from Russia, France, Japan, South Korea, China and the US. In July 2012, Areva-Mitsubishi said its Atmea-1 reactor unit had been prequalified by state-owned operator Nucleoeléctrica Argentina SA as a possible technology for construction of a new nuclear unit in Argentina.
In February 2010, the government signed an agreement with Rosatom to share technical information related to the construction of nuclear power plants and look at possibly using Russian technology in the country. In April 2010, a nuclear cooperation agreement was signed with Russia, and in September 2010, another was signed with South Korea.
Earlier this month Atucha-2 nuclear reactor was synchronised with the nation’s electricity grid and is likely to be operating at 100 percent power by November 2014, Nucleoeléctrica said.
Atucha-2 will be Argentina’s third nuclear reactor unit. The others are Atucha-1, which began commercial operation in June 1974, and Embalse, which began commercial operation in January 1984. The existing two units generate almost 10 percent of the country’s electricity.
Argentina’s government has announced that Atucha-2 will officially be known as Presidente Néstor Carlos Kirchner, after the former president who died in 2010.
