Radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel management strategy in Republic of Armenia IAEA, Vienna 24-26 May
Geography and Climate The Republic of Armenia is a landlocked mountainous country bordered on the north by the Republic of Georgia, on the east and southwest by Azerbaijan, on the south by Iran and on the west by Turkey (FIG 1). The northern border is 196 km long, the border with Azerbaijan is 913 km; the southern border has a length of 42 km and the western border, 280 km. The land area of the republic is 29 743 km 2. The terrain is defined by the high Armenian Plateau with mountains, little forestation and fast flowing rivers. The average height above sea level is about 1800 metres. The climate is highland continental with hot and dry summers and cold winters. Annual average temperature varies from -2.7 C to 13.8 C. The coldest month is January (from 1.2 C to -12.8 C) and the hottest months are July and August (from 25.8 C to 28.7 C). Summer temperatures may rise to 46 C, winter temperatures reach a minimum of -46 C. Summer relative humidity is 32-45% (July- August), winter relative humidity is 80-90%. Annual rainfall varies from 220 mm to 900 mm. The annual maximum sunshine is 2780 hours (Lake Sevan area), and minimum annual sunshine is 1930 hours (Ijevan).
Population Economic Indicators Population (millions) 3.010 Population density (inhabitants/km 2 ) 101.2 GDP (millions of current USD) 10893 GDP (millions of constant 2005-USD) 7102 Urban Population** as % of total 63.5 GDP per capita (current USD/capita) 3618.9 Area (1000 km 2 ) 29.743
Main Indicators On January 1, 2015 the total capacity of the electric energy generating plants in Armenia was 4.06 GW(e). In 2015, electricity production was 7.8 billion kwh. Instaled capacity Electricity production 9% 36% 36% 31% 60% 28%
NUCLEAR POWER SITUATION Historical Development and current organizational structure A decision to construct a nuclear power plant in Armenia was made by the former USSR Council of Ministers, and the appropriate decree was issued in September 1966. The technical specification to design the ANPP was developed by Teploelectroproject in 1968 and approved in August 1969 under decree N 1624 R.C. of the former USSR Ministry of Energy. More than 20 potential sites were considered for the ANPP construction, and finally a site was selected in the western part of the Ararat valley, 16 km from Turkish border, 10 km to the north-east of region centre Hoktemberyan (Armavir), and 28 km (to the west) from Yerevan. Location of the ANPP is shown in Figure 3. In accordance with that specification, the capacity of the ANPP (first stage of construction) with VVER-440 type reactors was to be 815.0 MW, each unit of 407.5 MW. The ANPP design life-time was specified to be 30 years. The comprehensive studies and analyses showed that seismic conditions of the ANPP site were characterized an intensity level of eight-point s according to MSK-64 scale. It was the first nuclear power plant in the USSR intended to be constructed in a region of high seismicity. The specific nature of the ANPP site - its seismicity - caused significant changes in the design of VVER-440/230, not only in construction, but also in the design of the reactor facility as a whole, and the reactor was assigned with the new identification V-270. The design of the reactor was based on the project of Unit 3 and 4 of the Novovoronezh NPP. The reactor building, auxiliary building, ventilation stack, as well as the buildings and structures containing equipment and instrumentation of safety systems or safety-related on-line systems and communications connecting these structures were assigned with a category of High Importance. They were considered to have one point more seismic resistance than that of the ANPP site. The ANPP was commissioned in 1976, achieving initial criticality for Unit 1 on 22 December 1976 and for Unit 2 on 5 January 1980. The units were put into commercial operation on 6 October, 1977 and 3 May 1980, respectively.
After the 1988 earthquake, although the ANPP was not damaged, the Council of Ministers of the USSR decreed to shut down the ANPP as a precautionary measure. Unit 1 was shut down on 25 February, 1989 and Unit 2 on 18 March, 1989. The units were not decommissioned, but kept in prolonged shut down condition. Apart from those which occurred during the short period of regaining independence, there have been no strong antinuclear movements in Armenia. The current sentiment of the public can be explained not by lack of awareness of the risks involved in the utilization of nuclear energy, but, in the face of the difficult economic conditions, by the considerably lower price of nuclear electricity, which outweighs its possible risks In April 1993, the Government of Armenia decided to restart Unit 2 of the ANPP in order to overcome the severe economic crisis, taking into account the lack in national energy resources. Following 6.5 years of outage, with the technical and financial help of the Russian Federation, Unit 2 of the ANPP was restarted on 5 November 1995. Unit 1 remained in a state of stand-still. According to the decision of the RA Government minutes on 27 March 2014 the works for the extension of the Armenian NPP Unit 2 design lifetime have been launched. After the execution of the work the relevant documents will be submitted to the Armenian Nuclear Regulatory Authority to receive the Unit s exploitation license for the period beginning September 2016. Following the ANPP restart, 35.85 billion kwh of electric energy had been generated by 1 January, keeping to the load schedule of the Armenian power system.
Future Development of Nuclear Power According to the decision of the RA Government minutes on 27 March 2014 the works for the extension of the Armenian NPP Unit 2 design lifetime have been launched. After the execution of the work the relevant documents will be submitted to the Armenian Nuclear Regulatory Authority to receive the Unit s exploitation license for the period beginning September 2016. The Energy Security Ensuring Concept of the Republic of Armenia was adopted by the President of RA on 23 October 2013 according to which Armenia will continue to exploit the existing nuclear unit until the construction of the new one. Action Plan for provision the energy security concept of the republic of Armenia for 2014-2020 was adopted by the Government Decree 836-N as of 31 July 2014. According to the action plan in 2026 should be put into operation the new nuclear power plant up to 1000 MW capacity. The document on Long-term (up to 2036) development pathways for RA energy sector has been approved by the RA government protocol decision 54-13, on 10 December 2015. Nuclear scenario of development has been once again stated. According to that document taking into account the energy consumption and the needs to ensure the energy security of the country is necessary to build the new nuclear power plant up to 600 MW capacities.
RW and SNF management strategy development The RA Government protocol decree 43 as of 4 November 2010 on approval of the concept on safe management of radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel in RA settles the objectives of the National Policy for safe management of radioactive waste and spent fuel in the Republic of Armenia. During the development of the Policy document all the topics/typical elements highlighted in the IAEA Nuclear Energy Series No.NW-G-1.1 document on Policies and strategies for radioactive waste management and as well others specific to the circumstances of the Republic of Armenia were taken into consideration. In order to implement the Policy and to specify the ways for achieving the goals identified in the Policy, the activities on development of SF and RW management strategy document were initiated in 2011. And, within the frame of EC Development and Cooperation (DEVCO) Programme, the development of National Strategy on Radioactive Waste and Spent Fuel Management started in September 2013 and is finalized at the end of 2015.
RW and SNF management strategy development Armenian NPP Generated radioactive waste according to the aggregate state are divided into solid radioactive wastes (SRW) and liquid radioactive wastes (LRW) which in turn are classified according their activity to very low level, low level, intermediate level and high level radioactive waste. Solid radioactive waste before transfer for storage to the storage systems undergoes preliminary treatment, including: Collection; Classification according to activity; Defragmentation (if needed); Packaging; Placement in interim SRW containers; Transportation and placement of SRW in corresponding storage systems. Solid radioactive wastes are not processed at the Armenian NPP. Liquid radioactive waste in the Armenian NPP are processed at the deep evaporation facility (DEF), the originated product ( salt cake ) is packed in metal containers (drums), where it is solidified (crystallized) and placed for temporary storage in the solid intermediate level waste storage system and on thespecialized storage in theauxiliary building.
RW and SNF management strategy development Rendering Harmless of Radioactive Waste Radon is currently the storage site for institutional radioactive waste and disused sealed sources. The main issue is the currently stored waste that should be retrieved, characterized, T&C for storage and disposal. It is proposed that CJSC be merged into the new WMO
SNF managment The proposed strategy is based on the most prudent approach, i.e. a «wait-and-see» option, similar to that adopted by majority of countries with nuclear programs It is therefore proposed to plan for very long term dry storage of SNF, i.e. the end of the century, when also the new unit will be decommissioned The strategy has to consider the final disposal of SNF or of the vitrified waste as HLW
Dry Storage Technology The need to plan for a very long term dry storage requires to put attention to safety, security and flexibility of any solution Current technology, Nuhoms, is perfectly safe in the current conditions and in the short medium time, but considerations should be given also to the long term 13
Transport In Republic of Armenia fresh and spent fuel, and radioactive waste and radioactive sources transportation needs are very limited Fresh fuel is currently transported by air; this is not possible for SNF Domestic transports will continue with full compliance with the IAEA rules Transportation of SNF abroad could occur only by rail across RA borders with Georgia and then again by rail or ship; however railways shall be upgraded to be licensed for such freights 14
Recomendation The most important gaps to be filled or aspects to be completed are: Creation of a Waste Management Organization fully integrated in the entire RW cycle, with precise responsibilities and adequate economic and human resources Completion of the funding schemes and mechanisms for all aspects of all RW and SNF including the assurance of funds in the long term Attention should be given also to developing bilateral agreements with neighbor countries, as soon as politically viable, for managing any nuclear safety aspects both in normal and emergency conditions potentially affecting those countries. This concept applies not only to ANPP operation, but also to RW and SNF management