ST. PETERSBURG, May 23 (RIA Novosti) – The share of nuclear energy in Russia's total energy balance should reach 25 percent, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday.
"We have a whole plan of development, we want to reach at least 25 percent of nuclear energy in our total energy balance. It will require hard work," Putin said at a meeting with global business leaders.
Putin said that nuclear energy currently makes up only 16 percent of the country’s total energy balance.
Russia is planning to construct up to 25 large nuclear power units in the country. Speaking at the plenary session of the St. Petersburg Economic Forum, dedicated to “Sustaining Confidence in a World Undergoing Transformation,” Putin stressed that the new facilities would meet all modern standards of safety, especially in light of the Fukushima tragedy.
Russia is also working with its partners in India to help the country build additional nuclear reactors, where the Kudankulam nuclear power plant was built with Russian assistance and its first reactor unit was brought to 90 percent of its capacity earlier this month.
