Stanislav Mitrakhovich, senior expert of National Energy Security Foundation

– Big facilities like NPP will certainly benefit Kaliningrad region

Public hearings on the Baltic NPP project will take place in Neman, Kaliningrad region, on July 24 2009.

In Feb 2009 the Government said that in the coming five years the oil production in Russia may drop by 8%. In such a situation, we will have to use alternative sources of energy, particularly, nuclear power. Besides, the north-west of Russia has been traditionally oriented towards high technologies and nuclear power engineering, in particular. The share of nuclear energy there has always been higher than in other regions. So, we must not lose our positions.

This project will give people jobs – and not just ordinary jobs but jobs related to high technologies. This will be good news for the people who are afraid of being fired in the autumn because of the second wave of the crisis.

This region will give Kaliningrad budgetary revenues. Big facilities like NPP will certainly benefit the region.

The 1st unit of Baltic NPP is supposed to be launched in 2016.