CNNC may become investor in new Russian reactor

The co-investor in a project of low-power reactor on fast neutrons SVBR-100 together with Rosatom and Oleg Deripaska's structures can become the Chinese CNNC. The project, launched in 2009, rose in price by half to 30 billion rubles, and the companies have been looking for funds for it since the spring. Russia is a traditional partner of China in the nuclear industry, but until now only finished solutions were delivered to Beijing. Rosatom and Irkutskenergo (a part of Oleg Deripaska’s En +) may attract Chinese state-owned nuclear company CNNC into their parity joint venture AKME Engineering, which elaborates a project of a low-power reactor on fast neutrons SVBR-100 (100 MW). As En + stated to the Kommersant, it discusses possible further steps with Rosatom and doesn’t rule out involvement of a new investor, including CNNC. It doesn’t specify what share of the Chinese company can get. Rosatom explained that it doesn’t hold negotiations with CNNC itself, but welcomed the attraction of investors. Rosatom didn’t rule out the possibility that it would buy a part of the state corporation’s share. One of the Kommersant’s sources, familiar with the situation, says that the issue of CNNC participation in SVBR 100 was raised in general during the meeting of the Chinese and representatives of Rosatom at the beginning of October.