Information agency Regnum, citing a source in the Armenian government, reported that Russia has expressed its readiness to entirely fund construction of a new nuclear power plant in Armenia. According to the source, the pertinent agreement had already been reached between the parties during the visit of the head of RosAtom Sergey Kirienko to Yerevan in early May. As Regnum detailed, the arrangement might be part of the new Russian strategy of gaining proprietary shares in nuclear power plants constructed abroad with the assistance of Russian specialists and funds. The anticipated shares will be between five percent and 30 percent.

The operational capacity of the current nuclear power plant in Armenia expires in 2016. However, after signing the European New Neighborhood Policy Agreement, Armenia pledged to ensure the power plants closure on a much earlier date. Estimated costs associated with the safe shut down of the Metsamor nuclear power station are $240 million. In the meantime, the nuclear plant provides half of the energy used in the country.

This information was originally published May 7, 2007 (www.regnum.ru)