Nuclear-powered oil tankers?

["Doty, Patrick" <fpdoty@SANDIA.GOV>]

I found this news story intriguing: 



An idea being mooted in Russia to turn aging nuclear submarines into oil

tankers raises fears in Norway. Anatoly Yefremov, the governor of the

Archangelsk region, suggested that Typhoon submarines could be refitted to

carry 10,000 tons of oil if their missile launch rooms were converted into

tanks. 

< http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/em/fr/-/1/hi/world/europe/3028317.stm >





Can this be practical?  Nuclear powered surface shipping might be cheaper

than fossil fuel, but how would the total cost of nuclear submarine

transport compare with large surface vessels using fossil?   





(Of course the story pays more attention to radiation interfering with

managing spills!)





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