News
Publish date: October 23, 1997
Written by: Igor Kudrik
News
According to the official returns from the Technical Department of the Russian Navy in Moscow, dry dock SD-10 has been taken out of operation. During World War 2 this dock was blasted into the mountain from the seaward side in Gremikha. It was later rebuilt to accommodate refuelling activities of Project 705 – Alfa class submarines with liquid metal cooled reactors.
In 1995 the dry dock started to leak water inside. Several attempts to repair the facility failed. At last the Navy had to take the dock officially out of operation in 1997. The cost to repair the dock amounts to 5,5 million USD, which has not been provided so far. The situation is aggravated by the fact that the repairs can be conducted only 4 months a year due to the severe climate in the area.
There were seven submarines of Alfa class built in the Soviet Union. All of them are currently taken out of operation. In addition, one submarine of November class was outfitted with two liquid metal reactors. This submarine was dumped in the shallow waters on the eastern side of Novaya Zemlya. Two reactor cores from this submarine are also stored in Gremikha.
All in all, there are 6 liquid metal reactor cores in Gremikha’s storage facility. Two submarines of Alfa class and one reactor compartment (located in Saida-guba on the Kola Peninsula) still have fuel inside the reactors. These three objects were to be defuelled, although this operation now is postponed for an unspecified period of time.
Recent attacks on Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant "mark the beginning of a new and gravely dangerous front of the war," the UN atomic agency's director general said last week.
After years of inaction, Germany is working on its Carbon Management Strategy to resolve how CCS can play a role in climate action in industry. At the end of February, the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action published first key points and a proposal to amend the law Kohlenstoffdioxid Speicherungsgesetz (KSpG). Bellona Deutschland, who was actively involved in the previous stakeholder dialogue submitted a statement in the association hearing.
In the midst of a global discussion on whether natural gas should be used as a transitional fuel and whether emissions from its extraction, production, transport and use are significantly less than those from other fossil fuels, Russia has developed ambitious plans to increase its own production of liquified natural gas (LNG) in the Arctic – a region with 75% of proven gas reserves in Russia – to raise its share in the international gas trade.
In this news digest, we monitor events that impact the environment in the Russian Arctic. Our main focus lies in identifying the factors that contribute to pollution risks and climate change.