IAEA okayed construction of nuclear research reactor in Azerbaijan

PanARMENIAN.Net - In mid-December the Azeri delegation will head for Vienna to discuss the construction stages.



Mahmoud Kerimov, president of the Azerbaijani national academy of sciences, told reporters that the reactor with 1-megawatt capacity will be built somewhere between Baku and Sumgait.



Baku made the proposal during an IAEA session in Vienna, according to him.



"The proposal was welcomed. Moreover, the Agency will finance the construction scheduled for 2009-2011," he added.



"Energy knows no alternative to nuclear power plants. Many states made a shift in their policy and engaged in competition for building such plants. However, Azerbaijan doesn't plan construction of a nuclear power plant in the near future," Kerimov said.



Local experts say hydrocarbon supplies in Azerbaijan will exhaust by 2020-2025. Hence, construction of a nuclear power plant can become a dire necessity for the republic. Furthermore, Azerbaijan's energy potential is incapable to satisfy the needs of developing economy, Nezavisimaya Gazeta reports.