Bellona nuclear digest. August 2024
A survey of events in the field of nuclear and radiation safety relating to Russia and Ukraine.
News
Publish date: April 22, 1998
Written by: Igor Kudrik
News
Feeling the squeeze of reduced budgets, the Russian army seeks extraordinary ways of survival. Last year, there were news stories revealing the plans to sell a nuclear powered submarine to a foreign country, earning some 2 billion USD. This year, the Defence Ministry has announced its intentions to use nuclear powered submarines to carry rich tourists to the North Pole.
The existing plans suggest that Typhoon-class submarines are the most suitable for such purposes. Typhoon-class is the biggest submarine in the world, which is able to take onboard some 200 passengers at a time.
On another tack, the initiative of the Defence Ministry contains no innovations. Since 1989, the nuclear powered icebreakers based in Murmansk have been making commercial trips to the North Pole, carrying tourists onboard. The price tag for such a trip amounts to 25,000 USD. The newest nuclear icebreaker Yamal, commissioned in 1993, received a special outfit at the shipbuilding yard to accommodate tourists. In this connection, one can think that the new generation strategic submarine of Borey-class, which is currently under construction in Severodvinsk, will have an extra space for those who are eager to pay big money to be onboard during a sea trile.
A survey of events in the field of nuclear and radiation safety relating to Russia and Ukraine.
Kazakhstan voted in a referendum last weekend on whether to build its first nuclear power plant, and an exit poll showed voters backed the idea promoted by President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's cabinet in an effort to phase out coal plants.
In this news digest, we monitor events that impact the environment in the Russian Arctic. Our focus lies in identifying the factors that contribute to pollution and climate change.
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