Vladimir Grachyov, chairman of State Duma Committee on Ecology

— Everybody understands that Rosatom state corporation is a serious step towards more effective use of our huge experience in nuclear industry

“During the discussion of the bill (on the establishment of Rosatom state corporation) there was just one critical remark (by Communists) but it was not to the point. It was strange to see the Communists criticizing the bill as by establishing Rosatom state corporation we are, in fact, revising the Soviet-time Minsredmash (Ministry of Medium Machine Building). The corporation will be given a huge industry and, I think, it will manage it much more effective that a ministry of atomic industry would do. If Minsredmash was good for the epoch of people’s economy, when the whole property was in the hands of the state, the corporation will be oriented towards highly competitive, effective management of a big number of companies, hundreds of different forms of ownership.”
 
As an ecologist, I believe that the establishment of the corporation fully meets Russia’s goals in the field of peaceful use of nuclear energy both at home and abroad. Most of the developed countries are reviving their nuclear industries and our goal is to get a worthy place among them. That’s exactly why the corporation has been set up – to build nuclear power plants both inside and outside the country in a much bigger quantity than in the Soviet times. I don’t think that the bill will be strongly revised by the second reading.

To remind, on Oct 11 the State Duma approved the first reading of a bill on the establishment of Rosatom state corporation.

The bill stipulates the establishment of a state corporation, which is supposed to replace the Federal Agency for Nuclear Energy, to unite the civil and military sectors of the nuclear industry and to ensure its stable work. The Corporation will comprise Atomenergoprom holding and the federal state unitary enterprises owned by the Federal Agency for Nuclear Energy, i.e. the nuclear weapons complex, research institutes and nuclear and radiation safety agencies. The Corporation will be subsidized by the Government and special reserve funds.