[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]
Lithuanian PM assures EU will close nuke reactor
Lithuanian PM assures EU will close nuke reactor
VILNIUS, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Lithuanian Prime Minister Rolandas Paksas
on Thursday assured European Commissioner Gunter Verheugen his
country will stick to its pledge to shut down the first reactor of
the Ignalinanuclear power plant in 2005.
"The Prime Minister said Lithuania will carry out all its obligations
regarding the Ignalina nuclear power plant and all agreements will be
executed," the government's press office said in a statement.
Before Paksas left for Brussels on Wednesday, his cabinet approved a
step-by-step plan detailing the first reactor's decommissioning.
The first stage involves preparatory work through January 1, 2005
followed by preparations for the dismantling of the reactor and its
facilities for long-term storage going until 2010.
The dismantling of the block and the reactor's facilities and
premises is seen starting in 2011 and running through 2030-2080.
Decommissioning of the plant is one of the key conditions of the
country's integration into the EU, which Lithuania wants to join in
2004.
The EU and Lithuania's Nordic neighbours see Ignalina as unsafe since
it was built to the same design as Ukraine's Chernobyl, the site of
the world's worst civilian nuclear accident in 1986.
The government had said it will make a decision on the fate of
Ignalina's second reactor in 2004.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sandy Perle Tel:(714) 545-0100 / (800) 548-5100
Director, Technical Extension 2306
ICN Worldwide Dosimetry Service Fax:(714) 668-3149
ICN Pharmaceuticals, Inc. E-Mail: sandyfl@earthlink.net
ICN Plaza, 3300 Hyland Avenue E-Mail: sperle@icnpharm.com
Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Personal Website: http://sandyfl.nukeworker.net
ICN Worldwide Dosimetry Website: http://www.dosimetry.com
************************************************************************
The RADSAFE Frequently Asked Questions list, archives and subscription
information can be accessed at http://www.ehs.uiuc.edu/~rad/radsafe.html