System of low-capacity nuclear power plants as a strategic direction for national security

Abstract

The energy and economic plans for national security are key plans. It is shown that it is necessary to implement a systematically organized network of low-capacity nuclear power plants which is capable of increasing the country's national security at the international, regional, and local levels in respect to geopolitical and socioeconomic as well as various emergency situations. It is shown that such a system is especially important for increasing the energy security of all regions, realizing the resource and economic potential of remote and Arctic territories of our country, and consolidating and increasing the economic efficiency of the extraction industry.National security of the current Russian government is based on a complex of multiplan policies and diplomatic, economic, technological, ideological, military, and other measures, all of which are more complicated than before, and the solution of one or another combination of strategic, economic, diplomatic, and scientific-technical problems according to the national security strategy. The present article takes account of the basic assumptions, determining the principal goals, tasks, priorities, and mechanisms of implementation of the government policy as well as a system of strategic planning measures for socioeconomic development of the country's Arctic zone to 2020.We shall examine in this context the role of a system of low-capacity nuclear power plants, which are understood to be nuclear power-generating units with capacity to 50 MW(e). Estimates show that the demand of only the northern regions of the country is ~20 GW of their total installed capacity. Low-Capacity Nuclear Power Plants in Inaccessible Regions.In distributed power supply zones, low-capacity power generation plays a determining role in ensuring energy security. Because such zones encompass mainly the northern and north-eastern parts of our country with severe climate, difficult and expense conditions for delivering shipments, and remoteness from supply centers while maneuvering resources and capacity on small installations is hampered, their energy safety becomes especially acute.Telemedicine and remotely delivered education using stable communication channels based on a reliable electricity supply will be needed in inaccessible regions. Agricultural production is possible only in protected soil while comfortable housing requires heating. Thus, the implementation of the four most important national projects -public health, education, agriculture, and housing -depends on the power supply.At present, power generation based on renewable energy sources (wind, geothermal, tidal, and others) can be used to supply only household energy needs and some trades work, but substantial production requires base-load power generation.The total power generation and consumption in zones with decentralized power supply does not exceed 4-5% of the total for the country. But the unit cost of electricity in these regions is many-fold higher than the average expenditures on energy production in Russia. Power ...

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