With the launch in 1954 in the city of Obninsk , the world's first power plant operating on uranium isotope energy, the nuclear industry began its history. It was planned that the share of nuclear energy by the beginning of the second millennium would be at least 25% of global electricity generation. But, unfortunately, due to serious accidents, including those at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, by 2000 only 6% of the world's electricity was generated using nuclear fuel .
However, despite very meager indicators, several areas have formed in this industry. They occupy no small importance in the economic, defense and production spheres of many countries of the world.
Organization of the nuclear industry
For more than half a century the development of nuclear technology in Russia has formed four large, inextricably linked with each other research and production complexes:
- Energetic. He is in charge of the issues of extraction, enrichment and production of nuclear fuel, creation of enterprises in such fields as nuclear energy, and nuclear industry.
- Armory. Supervises the creation and testing of new models of nuclear weapons.
- Radiation safety. It is intended to protect the present and future generation from the harmful effects of ionizing radiation.
- Nuclear medicine. Introduces radionuclide drugs in the diagnosis and treatment of diseases.
The nuclear industry also includes a research complex that develops fundamental and applied knowledge in nuclear physics, as well as an atomic icebreaker fleet. Currently, the Russian nuclear industry includes more than 250 enterprises. Its main task is the wider use of nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
Energy complex
Due to the inextricable link between the nuclear industry and the country's security, all power is concentrated in the hands of the state corporation Rosatom. It is she who is responsible for the development and implementation of nuclear technologies in the fields of human activity. Uranium is mined mainly in Kazakhstan. The nuclear industry plans to expand its borders, and begin to cooperate with other countries - Namibia, Armenia, Canada.
Four joint-stock companies are engaged in uranium enrichment , and TVEL is a large company that produces nuclear fuel, which provides all 10 operating nuclear power plants in Russia, as well as 17% of all nuclear power plants in the world.
Nuclear weapons complex
The enterprises of the nuclear weapons complex are not separate divisions of the Russian defense industry. They work closely with other organizations, including civil companies. The main consumers of nuclear products in this sector are the railway, automotive and oil and gas industries.
The main objective of the nuclear weapons complex, which includes the nuclear industry, is to pursue a nuclear deterrence policy - to protect the territory and citizens of a country from nuclear weapons of other countries. For this purpose, the complex includes several federal nuclear centers.
Radiation Safety Complex
Protecting people and the environment from radiation exposure is an unshakable postulate of Rosatom.
To achieve this goal, the complex includes several enterprises that annually resolve issues in two main areas:
- Ensuring trouble-free operation of existing nuclear industry enterprises. It develops and implements projects to protect nuclear reactors from natural disasters, terrorist acts, as well as the environment from radioactive radiation.
- Disposal of spent fuel residues, as well as the elimination of decommissioned facilities of the "Atomic Project" of the USSR.
The nuclear industry receives about 150 billion rubles annually to address these issues.
Nuclear medicine
In collaboration with the Federal Medical and Biological Agency, a nuclear medicine complex is being created, which will become completely autonomous. PET centers (positron emission tomography centers) are already being created, the equipment of which will reveal tumors, metastases and pathological foci in the early stages of development.
The complex includes laboratories that are involved in the regulation of isotopes and quality control, as well as directly medical centers, which diagnose and treat patients.
Nuclear technology is increasingly being introduced into our lives. Now the country employs about 190 thousand people in this area. And it is not surprising that the Government of the Russian Federation defined a calendar day - September 28, which the employee of the nuclear industry can consider his professional holiday.