§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what has been the total cost to(a) the European Union and (b) the United Kingdom of work done at the Chernobyl site since the accident on 26 April 1986. [40634]
§ Mr. BattleAt the 1992 Summit in Munich, G7 leaders launched a programme of nuclear safety assistance for the countries of Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union. Although the EU was providing some help in identifying options for dealing with the sarcophagus, Chernobyl was not a target for nuclear safety assistance as Ukraine planned to close the plant by the end of 1993. Following 37W the Ukrainian Parliament's reversal of that decision in late 1993, the EU at the 1994 Corfu Summit offered Ukraine an action plan leading, amongst other things, to the closure of Chernobyl. After extensive negotiations, the G7 countries, European Commission, and Ukraine signed a Memorandum of Understanding in 1995 which provided for support for Ukraine's energy sector, including help with nuclear safety at Chernobyl and the decommissioning of the plant. The MOU commits Ukraine to close the plant by the year 2000. Of the 100 mecu Tacis assistance offered by the EU at Corfu, 60 mecu has been allocated for work on site. This includes a site survey (0.5 mecu), development of a plan for dealing with the sarcophagus (2.5 mecu) and turnkey projects for three decommissioning facilities (38.5 mecu). An on-site assistance team is now in place primarily to help with the procurement of these facilities.
In 1993, the UK's Know How Fund supported completion on a £217,000 land remediation study for the benefit of Ukraine's Ministry of Chernobyl Affairs. The EU has financed a number of studies linked to the development of an optimal management route for dealing with the different types of contamination around the site.
The EU has also contributed 20 mecu to the EBRD-managed Nuclear Safety Account. Of the UK's £18.25 million contribution to that account, £10 million has been specifically scheduled for the Ukraine. The commitments to this fund stand at 270 mecu and the 118 mecu project for Chernobyl includes safety upgrades for Unit 3, as well as a liquid radwaste treatment plant and a spent fuel interim storage facility to assist with decommissioning.
The G7 and the Ukraine have now agreed on a Shelter Implementation Plan to ensure that the sarcophagus is transformed into a safe and environmentally stable condition. The EU has pledged $100 million to the fund which has been set up to finance this plan. The UK is making a separate bilateral donation of $16.8 million. A project management team has now been appointed and tendering will shortly begin for the first stage of the work. A £20,000 UK Government-financed study into the options for treating the water trapped in the sarcophagus is shortly to be made available to the project management team.