Turkey Continues to Demand Armenia Shut Down Metsamor Nuclear Power Plant
If the issue of the Metsamor nuclear power plant is not resolved between Turkey and Armenia, in the case of a nuclear reactor accident, there might be more disastrous consequences than what happened in Chernobyl, said Istanbul Technical University Alumni Dr. Tayfun Kindap, who, in 2008, conducted a study on the potential threats to Turkey of such an accident. In Kindap’s opinion, the nuclear plant has been constructed with outdated technologies and is located on an area of seismic activity.
According to Kindap, in the case of a nuclear reactor accident at Metsamor, it’s not only Armenia and Turkey, but also Europe that will suffer the consequences.
“Europe understands that danger, and the European Union with that purpose is going to shut down Armenia’s Metsamor NPP and they have proposed 100 million Euro to look into new energy sources. However, the negotiations didn’t lead to any results, since the nuclear power plant secures 40% of Armenia’s energy needs and Armenia was demanding 800 million Euro.
“Armenia has to shut down Metsamor NPP and find another route to secure its energy needs. Turkey can also work on that issue, since we are located close to the nuclear power plant,” said Kindap.
The Metsamor NPP was built during the 1970s and is located about thirty kilometres west of the Armenian capital of Yerevan, and 16 km east of the Turkish border. The plant, closed due to the 1988 Spitak (or, Gyumri) earthquake in Armenia, was reopened in 1993 due to blockades by Turkey and Azerbaijan, which created energy shortages in Armenia.
In December 2009, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s Armenian Service reported that the Armenian government aimed to create a Russian-Armenian joint venture tasked with building a new nuclear power station to replace Metsamor NPP.
Source: Tert – Original Article
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