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Radioactive broken trough: Lithuania celebrates the anniversary of the death of his energy

Разбитое радиоактивное корыто: Литва справляет юбилей со дня смерти своей энергетики

Exactly 10 years ago, new year’s eve from 2009 to 2010 Lithuanians singing and dancing killed the goose that laid not even gold, and diamond eggs off the second unit of the Ignalina NPP. Tell me what is this epic “fail”.

For the beginning about how the business of nuclear energy. First: nuclear energy in the operating costs fantastically cheap. For its development it is not required to burn millions of tons of expensive hydrocarbons, it is not necessary to pull the gas pipe through Malcontenta or digging coal mines to the center of the earth.

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The need for fuel of a nuclear reactor with hundreds of kilograms per year. One carriage.

But! The construction of a nuclear power plant on the “zero” stage is a huge cost. In addition to the reactor, which is worth 5.7 billion dollars required to build a city. Yes, the whole city, and the “open field”.

The fact that the rules of safety of nuclear power plants can not be placed closer than 30 km from major cities. And personnel of the nuclear giant, requires a lot.

For example, at the Ignalina NPP during its heyday worked up to 5 thousand people. That is, with families — 15 thousand And it means that the city is under a nuclear power plant should be built on a population of 30+ thousand.

Such a giant nuclear project started back in 1975-m to year the Soviet Union’s Baltic region, where electricity was in a severe deficit. Don’t know how to translate into modern dollars, the then Soviet rubles, can themselves figure out.

But in 1983, after 8 years, the Lithuanian shore of lake Druksiai (dull backwater on the border of Lithuania, Latvia and Belarus, then Soviet) was already a town of 30 thousand people and launched the first nuclear reactor. In 1987 he earned a second.

By the time it was built the third and was equal to the area under the fourth.

On this site worked the whole Union, your humble servant also had a hand in it. I think if you put the rubles of the USSR in modern dollars, the price of this project will be over 50 billion.

For several years the Lithuanian SSR from the energy province has become the largest producer of electricity in the region. A single reactor herself enough for the eyes, and the energy of the second she drove exported to Latvia, Estonia, Belarus, Russia (then the Soviet of the Latvian SSR, Estonian SSR, the Byelorussian SSR, RSFSR).

***

And then came 1991 and, broke “Nezalezhnost”. The Soviet Union as the Russia left, taking with them the debts of the Square republics, and all the bonuses in the form of nuclear power plants — gave. Free.

So, again about the business. The cost of “atomic” kilowatt-hours, if only “overhead” — the penny. The Director General of Ignalina nuclear power plant, Viktor Shevaldin, when I interviewed him 10 years ago, on the eve of the closure of the station, said that the station is selling energy to the state at 1.8 cents per one KWh.

And profits from the sale of the station will be enough to make their own build and the third and fourth units. And the state sells it to the energy consumers for 18-20 cents. Having a 1 000%!

Again, if someone does not understand. If you want to be involved in the nuclear power industry as an investor, tempted by the tysyacheprotsentnaya profit, don’t forget to take into account the costs of the construction of the first city of nuclear scientists, then the reactors themselves, to invest many tens of billions, and then profits to pay off the loan about 50 years. And the picture of this business will cease to be rosy.

But Lithuania nuclear power plant along with the city has got a GIFT! It gave her Soviet father frost! And flew away.

***

The 1990s and early 2000s, the Ignalina nuclear power plant worked at full capacity, supplying the collapsing Lithuanian budget in hard currency. The export of electricity to Lithuania was the only reliable source of income.

But there is good Soviet Santa Claus came Santa Claus and the European Union. And set a condition: if you want to join us, close the Ignalina nuclear power plant.

Justified: the reactors of INPP — “Chernobyl” type. That is the threat.

And no matter what in 20 years after the Chernobyl disaster, the reactors Ignalina held profound modernization and the IAEA (the world’s main overseer for nuclear safety) found them the most reliable in Europe.

Documented, after hundreds of thorough inspections! The EU has demanded to close it! Not discussed.

Lithuanians are a little paracentisis and lost, very much they would like in the “Europa”, already between my legs itched… In 2004, was decommissioned the first reactor of the INPP, and new year’s eve from 2009 to 2010 is the second. Lithuania from the main energy exporter in the region is its main importer.

***

For those who do not know: to close a nuclear power plant is not a fire to extinguish at pioneer. Coal or gas stations to close — to wait for it to cool boilers-turbines, drank to scrap it all with a bulldozer and planted a green lawn. Cases for a week.

To bury nuclear plant to a “green lawn” of the decade.

You first need to unload spent nuclear fuel, cooling it in a special pool, to wait a few years until it “blows over”. Then drank the tapes into pieces, lay on the barrels, pour the bitumen and buried in a special burial deep underground.

Then disassemble the reactors themselves, to pull out the radioactive graphite-metal systems (hundreds of tons), similarly to saw, to lay and bury. This is all done manually and a special robotic machine-guns. For humans it is deadly to touch, even after 10 years.

Then, when all the worst from the reactor is extracted, you have these robot machines-positioners similarly cut, to fill in with bitumen in barrels and buried. And then bury the machines that sawed these machines…

Director General of the INPP Shevaldin told me that if by 2035, this process will be completed before the “green lawn” will be the glory of God. And before that on the station and during active operation will run thousands of people. Only not for profit (from the sale of energy) and on the net and uncomplicated losses.

So, in fact, happening. After the shutdown of INPP 10 years ago, it employs about 2 thousand people. And the end-edge is not visible. And this whole process should sternly guard. Wishing to get from a reactor of some crap in the “dirty” radioactive bomb in Europe today is available in commercial quantity.

***

On the eve of the closure of the INPP in the fall of 2009, I interviewed the President of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaite, she had just become President, was so cheerful and optimistic, with Komsomol enthusiasm. Among others I asked, what about the future of nuclear energy in Lithuania after closure of Ignalina NPP?

Dalia happily replied: everything is fine! We are now close to the Soviet (totalitarian) nuclear power plant, and instead build a proper, good, suitable Western reactors. Right now we bustin investors (Latvia, Estonia, Poland) to build will be French or Japanese, but we had the name of the new station came up — Vishinsky nuclear power plants. Ho-Ho!

…10 years have passed.

About “Vishinsky NPP” Lithuanians better to remind howl obscene can face stuff. Lithuania buys Russian liquefied natural gas to plug the holes in its energy “Nezalezhnosti”.

Mice were pricked, cried, but ate a cactus.

And on the border with Lithuania, 50 km from the capital Vilnius ingenious Belarusian “Batka” is building a nuclear power plant with Rosatom. An hour away from the deceased Ignalina nuclear power plant, but from its side of the border, where EU commissioners — not the decree.

Got this in 2020 promises to put into operation the first unit. Followed immediately by a second.

***

The icing on the cake. When, in 1975, was designed Ignalina NPP, it would be put on the Belarusian shore of lake Druksiai. It edge, has two banks — Lithuanian and Belarusian. The Belarusian side is called lake Drisvyaty. But the designers decided to move the station at 3 km in the direction of the Lithuanian SSR — where the soil was better.

Initially, the project was planned to build 4 reactors, the most powerful in the world RBMK-1500. In order to ensure the entire region (from Warsaw to Pskov) almost gratuitous electricity. And then to finish 2 of the reactor as the industrial development of the region…

Now, if back in 1975-m the designers had not moved the station on 3 km in the direction of the Lithuanian SSR, I bet that the Belarusian shore of the lake would now be standing cheerfully working 4 reactor was built and 5th and 6th.

And wise the Belarusian “father”, not drank to scrap Soviet industry, would have rubbed his hands.

PS On the photo: the so-called “Nickel” — a cover of the second reactor of the Ignalina NPP, December 30, 2009, I’m on it. Below me the raging heat capacity of 4.8 gigawatts. Through the day he dies. Remember…

© 2019, paradox. All rights reserved.

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