Last week nine military officials from Russia were in Colorado to discuss the details. Also last week, the Congress the Defense Authorization bill and it is now waiting to be signed into law. As a requirement, Russia must be recertified by the administration October 1 before any funding can continue. Unfortunately, this recertification process can often take several months. We cannot afford to lose any time in this matter.
Reliable energy is of key importance to the entire nation.
What this means is that fuel reserves for Russia's electric power monopoly will be low as the country heads into Y2K. DOE is working closely with Russia as it develops the necessary contingency plans that will be needed to maintain grid stability. Nuclear power plants are a serious concern for Russia. Russia has 29 nuclear power reactor units in operation at nine different sites. Most Soviet-designed reactors do not have such a containment structure. The most infamous plant without a containment structure is the Chernobyl-style reactor, and there are 11 of these reactors at three locations in Russia.