Information about the Mayak Federal State Unitary Enterprise and the Chelyabinsk "ban" was kept secret for a long time. The village did not even have a name, only a zip code. Over 70 years, a lot has changed. Having survived a radiation disaster in the middle of the last century, the company managed to cope with the situation and has achieved excellent results to date. The "closed" city of nuclear scientists Ozersk is an actively developing, with a large number of youth, beautiful and modern settlement. Today's media are quite openly broadcasting news about the defense enterprise, and the official site of Ozersk Mayak FSUE is on the Internet.
How it all began
The radiation explosion that occurred at the Mayak enterprise in 1957 could not disrupt life in Chelyabinsk-40. A dangerous "cloud" swept the other way. But many still talk about the consequences of the Kyshtym accident and the preceding water pollution in the Techa River in 1949. From this we can conclude that the establishment of a secret enterprise that manufactured the first atomic bomb was not easy.
In 1945, the first uranium project began. The construction of a nuclear reactor and its operation required a lot of electricity, railway communication, a huge amount of water to cool the core. The external secrecy of the area was also needed. The choice fell on the territory of the Chelyabinsk region, a section between the industrial cities of Kasli and Kyshtym, among dozens of lakes, away from large settlements. In June 1948, an object of special importance was put into operation, and the history of FSUE Mayak in Chelyabinsk began.
The South Ural "ban" has long been under a veil of secrecy. They only knew that living in the “fortieth” was very good, especially during the years of stagnation: shops were supplied from Moscow, there were practically no hooligans and crimes - a beautiful quiet city surrounded by forests and lakes.
Seventy atomic years of the Lighthouse
Due to the uniqueness of the Mayak software and the dedication of highly qualified specialists, the first successful test of a nuclear sample was carried out a year and a half after the opening of the plant. The time of development of the nuclear industry fell on the years of socialist construction. In keeping with the times and scientific discoveries, a new enterprise moved forward.
At the turn of the century, FSUE Mayak Production Association met with new challenges - the need to solve the environmental problems of past years.
It was necessary to decommission very hazardous facilities, requiring particularly close attention from the country's leadership. From the late 90s to this day, issues of ensuring the safety of the nuclear industry have been resolved. The priority is environmental protection and radiation protection. The 2003 presidential order, aimed at improving the environment in the cascade of the Techi river reservoirs, is being successfully implemented, and the enterprise is developing steadily in priority areas of activity.
The main activities of the enterprise
FSUE PA Mayak has at its disposal unique equipment and the necessary capacities to carry out the following activities:
- reactor production;
- chemical and metallurgical production;
- radiochemical production;
- production of radioactive isotopes;
- production of modern metalworking equipment;
- instrument making;
- ecology;
- the science.
Progressive directions
The company employs about twelve thousand highly qualified employees. Unique scientific and technical directions of the team:
- Regeneration of spent nuclear fuel from nuclear ships and submarines, nuclear power plants and research reactors.
- Creation of ionizing radiation aggregates for industrial and medical applications.
- Design and implementation of fundamentally new methods for managing chemical production and methods for monitoring the parameters of current processes.
Federal State Unitary Enterprise PO Mayak in Ozersk is considered the leading among nuclear power facilities of the Russian Federation that implement advanced, environmentally sound production methods.
What does Ozersk live today
The economy of modern Ozersk is a well-established structure. It includes a number of industries, transport, an impressive construction complex, communications, utilities, trade and public catering. The social sphere has been debugged: hospitals, clinics, cultural facilities, kindergartens, schools, institutions of additional education for children. Graduates of schools can receive higher and secondary special education not only in Ozersk, but also beyond its borders (targeted training). Seven and a half hundred organizations and enterprises with different forms of ownership successfully operate in the city. It is easy to guess that in the village where the main enterprise is FSUE Mayak, the chemical industry prevails (87.2%). Also in the atomic city, the food, light, woodworking industries, the construction materials industry, metalworking and engineering were developed. Of the 34 enterprises of the Ozyorsk urban settlement, 23 have the status of small businesses.
Development prospects
FSUE Mayak is a modern defense enterprise, part of the state corporation Rosatom. The large-scale program for improving the country's nuclear energy, outlined by the President of the Russian Federation, guarantees constant workload of not only the main, but also all non-military productions of Mayak, for example, machine tools.
The Director General of the enterprise Mikhail Ivanovich Pokhlebaev considers it a priority to integrate the technologies available at Mayak into the energy program of the whole country. The head draws attention to the importance of fulfilling the state defense order, the further development of production, and addressing safety and environmental issues.
The prospects for the development of the nuclear industry prophesy a successful future not only for Mayak and the Ozersky settlement, but also for all the people there. Who knows, maybe an unusual city will open the door for you. Worth trying!