US allocates $250 million loan to Ukraine for nuclear waste storage
The Ministry of Finance of Ukraine, the state company Energoatom, the US Government's Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and the Central Storage Safety Project Trust bank have signed a loan agreement for $250 million for the construction of a used nuclear fuel storage facility in Ukraine, the country's Ministry of Finance website has reported. The loan has been granted for a term of 20 years.
The Ministry noted that this project will allow Ukraine to renounce its use of Russia's services in the storage and processing of nuclear fuel, as well as to save money. The country spends about $200 million annually to export spent fuel to Russia, the Ministry stressed. The construction of the storage facility will allow "for the safe storage of valuable nuclear materials at home until the time when their processing becomes economically and energetically most effective."
Ukrainian Minister of Energy Ihor Nasalyk talked back in October 2016 about Ukraine's ambitions to end its utilization of spent fuel in Russia. He said at that time that the issue of constructing the storage facility had already been resolved by the authorities.