Ukraine should enrich its own uranium for power generation

By Aussiegirl

In a move designed to ease Ukraine's energy dependence on Russia, Viktor Yushchenko has announced that Ukraine must seek to enrich its own uranium in order to increase the use of nuclear power generation. Currently Ukraine exports raw uranium to Russia and then buys it back following enrichment.

Ukraine currently has four operating nuclear plants. Even though it was the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster at Chernobyl back in 1986, newer generations of nuclear reactors are safe from the kind of meltdown that occurred in the primitive and poorly designed Soviet reactor that exploded and contaminated a large area of Ukraine and Byelorus.

Ukraine voluntarily renounced its nuclear weapons when it achieved independence and returned some 1,300 nuclear warheads back to Russia for disarming. Some might say that Ukraine might have been wiser to keep those nuclear weapons as a deterrent against an increasingly aggressive and hostile Russia.

Scotsman.com News - Latest News - Ukraine 'must produce nuclear fuel'

Ukrainian president Viktor Yushchenko says his country should produce its own nuclear fuel for its power plans, part of an effort to reduce its reliance on Russia for energy following a bitter dispute over natural gas prices.