NEW NUCLEAR POWER PLANT: PROGRESS AND THE NEXT STEPS

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NEW NUCLEAR POWER PLANT PROGRESS AND THE NEXT
STEPS

• 6th Baltic Electricity Market Mini-Forum
• May 29, 2008

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Baltic Security Concerns

• Not secure supply of energy resources (natural
  gas, oil, orimulsion)
• Increased volatility in prices on energy
  resources
• Supply of energy resources became a political
  tool
• Dead-end position
• Capacity losses in the near future

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Common Efforts

• Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia calls to develop
  common energy strategy
• New energy strategy in Lithuania
• Positive response from Poland calling to act
  together jointly implementing regional energy
  security projects
• Positive responses from IAEA and EU countries on
  regional approach

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Economics Nuclear power
But
Advantages

• High upfront capital costs
• Sensitive to interest rates
• Long lead times (planning, construction, etc)
• Long payback periods
• Regulatory/policy risks

• Nuclear power plants are cheap to operate
• Stable predictable generating costs
• Long life time
• Supply security (insurance premium)

IAEA
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Environment Nuclear power
But
Advantages

• Low pollution emissions
• Small land requirements
• Small fuel waste volumes
• Wastes are managed
• Proven intermediary storage

• No final high level waste repository in operation
• High toxicity
• Needs to be isolated for long time periods
• Potential burden to future generations

IAEA
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Waste disposal strategies
ATMOSPHERE Partial removal to
solid waste SO2 NOX CO2
TOXIC
POLLUTANTS SOLID WASTE
GROUND DISPOSAL
shallow DISPERSION STRATEGY
RADIOACTIVE WASTE Volume reduction GROUND
DISPOSAL shallow or deep CONFINEMENT STRATEGY
IAEA
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Initiative Development
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Check-list under IAEA milestones

• National Position
• Nuclear Safety
• Management
• Funding and Financing
• Legislative Framework
• Safeguards
• Regulatory Framework
• Radiation Protection
• Electrical Grid
• Human Resource Development
• Stakeholders Involvement
• Site and supprting Facilities

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Check-list under IAEA milestones (continued)
11. Environmental Protection 12. Emergency
Planning 13. Security and Physical Protection 14.
Nuclear Fuel Cycle 15. Radioactive Waste 16.
Industrial Involvement 17. Procurement
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1. National Position

• Recognised role for nuclear power in the country
• Independent regulatory body
• Effective safeguards and non-proliferation system
• Comprehensive nuclear legal framework
• Policies, programs and facilities for
  decommissioning and waste management
• Policies and programs for human resource
  development
• Environmental protection system
• Radiation protection system

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3. Management

• Designated owner/operator
• Expansion of regulatory body
• Update of policies and programs for human
  resource development
• Continuation of communication to the public on
  nuclear power role
• Leadership in national planning for waste
  disposal and decommissioning

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4. Funding and Financing

• Strong public and government support for nuclear
  power
• Established credit worthiness
• Reasonable degree of stakeholder involvement
• Fully funded security and safeguards programs
• Competent regulatory framework with sufficient
  funding sources
• Legal framework to support specific financial
  approaches
• Arrangements for full financing of long term
  waste management and decommissioning
• Implementation of financial plans for new nuclear
  financing
• Electricity rates structure sufficient to ensure
  return on capital investment

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9. Electrical Grid

• Grid enhancement and/or expansion compatible with
  the expected new generation capacity
• Development of regional interconnections to
  achieve acceptable grid availability
• Redundant, reliable sources of off-site power for
  the nuclear power plant
• Funding and schedules compatible with the
  construction and commissioning of planned nuclear
  power plant

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10. Human Resource Development

• Business and technical expertise for site
  qualification and preparation for the
  construction permit
• Political and social expertise for public
  communication
• Technical and regulatory expertise to develop and
  implement regulations, codes and standards
• Business and technical expertise for fuel cycle
  management
• Expertise to conduct specific training programs

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Main Activities

• Environmental impact assessment
• Technology assessment
• Preparation of territorial planning documents
• Construction site studies
• Heavy equipment delivery study
• Preparation of educational programs
• Preparation of IT strategy
• Preparation of human resource strategy
• Negotiations with project partners
• Decision to secure project financing

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Progress on Activities

• EIA in progress and should be completed by Feb
  2009
• National Investor Company AB LEO LT has been
  established
• Project Implementation Company (PIC) shall be
  established with project partners
• The draft concept of Nuclear Safety Law has been
  prepared
• Nuclear Energy Law is under revision
• Regulatory authority VATESI has launched a
  revision of nuclear regulations
• VATESI is being given additional resources for
  structural and human resource adjustment

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Site Preparations
Workers quartering
Office for staff
NNPP construction site
Concrete batching plant
Inert materials storage
Wood reinforcement
Subcontractor (Steel struc. HM)
Steel reinforcement
Workers village
Soil dump
Equipment, materials storage
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Potential Problems

• Lack of experience in implementing of projects of
  such scale
• Underestimates in terms of resources and time
  schedule
• Lack of understanding and communication between
  the project partners, utility and regulator
• Differences in regulatory and working practices
  in Lithuania and country of technology provider
• Potential loopholes in national legislation
• No experienced project implementation company
• Regulatory and its supporting infrastructure may
  not be ready in time
• Bottlenecks in supply, not quite completed and
  approved technologies

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THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION