Russia’s far eastern region of Primorsky Kray has been ordered by the federal government to press ahead with a plan to construct a new nuclear power plant in the area. The plan, first introduced in 1995, calls for the construction of two 600 MWe Candu reactors, costing between $1.2 and $2 billion, with construction taking 4 to 5 years. Further discussions took place during a top level Russian-Canadian meeting in Moscow, in late October. A preliminary agreement was reached according to which Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd will provide the plant but Russia will assemble it. While the Atomic Energy Ministry, MINATOM, supports the Canadian proposal, it has not abandoned the idea of building new generation Russian designed VVER-640s in the region. To pay for the plant, the intention is to sell a part of the energy produced to neighbouring China.
