Semyon Dragulsky, Director General of Russian Union of Energy Efficiency

– I think that this is not only possible but quite real to gain 25%^ of the world nuclear market

On July 22 President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev chaired a meeting of the Committee on Modernization and Technological Development of Economy. The meeting took place at the Russian Federal Nuclear Center-All-Russian Research Institute of Experimental Physics (RFNC-VNIIEF). The Committee discussed the five key ways to modernize Russia’s economy: energy efficiency and energy saving and production of new types of fuel; nuclear technologies; space technologies (GLONASS (Global Navigation Satellite System)) and development of land infrastructure; medical technologies (diagnostic equipment and medicines); strategic information technologies (supercomputers and software).

I think that this is not only possible but quite real to gain 25% of the world nuclear market. Our nuclear power industry is quite competitive. Our specialists are competent enough to effectively modernize our nuclear power plants and to ensure their safety and efficiency. I think that we have all grounds for hoping that everything will be the way the President has said.

Yes, the crisis has curbed our active pace – this is a global process — but our nuclear industry is not worse than the nuclear sectors of the other developed states. I think that we will gain a worthy place on the world market.

Let’s not forge that we have just 10 nuclear power plants – much fewer than they in the United States or China have. Besides, the Americans and the Chinese have really grandiose development plans. China is planning to build some 100 reactors, the USA – as many as 200. So, our competitiveness must be based on the development of cheap and reliable energy sources. We keep talking about bio and wind energies but they are good for countries like Denmark or the Netherlands.

In the Soviet times our nuclear power industry was very strong and dynamic. In the 1990s and early 2000s it experienced certain decline. Mr.Kiriyenko is right that we need nuclear renaissance.

For this purpose, we must actively train specialists and, as far as I know, are doing it. We must actively recruit the youths living in nuclear cities. We are implementing very serious projects in this field. The last “Nuclear Renaissance” exhibition at the Polytechnic Museum has shown that the interest of young people in nuclear energy is growing.