Anna Nazaryan
Energy security expert Artur Avetisyan clarifies in his conversation with "Radiolur" that small modular reactors cannot be considered as an alternative to nuclear power plants. The Armenian nuclear power plant is incomparable with small nuclear reactors in terms of power, political, economic and, most importantly, safety. However, this does not mean that Armenia does not need small reactors.
"For the national security and energy security of the Republic of Armenia, it is important to have and build a new, more powerful nuclear power plant. Modular reactors can have a maximum capacity of 300 megawatts, for comparison, let me say that our ANPP-2 currently operating has a capacity of 408 megawatts.
Considering the growing demand for electricity in Armenia, as well as the possibility of connecting to the new North-South energy corridor, as well as connecting to the supply of electricity to EU countries through the Black Sea, modular reactors cannot be an alternative."
Small modular reactors are usually built in such small countries where either there is no space to build a nuclear power plant, or in countries where additional capacities are needed in parallel with the existing nuclear power plant, emphasizes Energy Security Expert Artur Avetisyan. According to the logic of the last option, for example, a small modular reactor can be an ideal option for the Syunik copper-molybdenum combine. And in terms of area, Metsamor fully meets the demand for building a new NPP.
"The current Metsamor platform grants us the opportunity to build a new large, powerful NPP with a capacity of up to 1300 megawatts, that is, three times more powerful than the existing one. In other words, if we consider this as an alternative to a powerful nuclear power plant, it is wrong and such an observation cannot be made, but if we consider the modular as an additional option parallel to the existing one, of course, it will be very good, that is, we will have both Russian and American technology. I am not putting the problem that the US is not good, the Russian one is good, or vice versa, but I am concerned that we do not lose the possibility of a powerful nuclear power plant. And I think that we are very close to the start of the new nuclear power plant project, if wrong political steps are not taken."
May 26, 2023 at 13:08