Summary

The United States and other nations have serious concerns about the safety of 58 Soviet-designed nuclear power reactors in Russia and eastern Europe. These reactors do not meet international nuclear safety standards. Twenty-five of these reactors, because they are of the oldest design, pose the greatest safety risk; fifteen of these reactors are the type that exploded at Chernobyl in 1986. In July 1992, the Group of 7--the major industrialized nations--announced a multi-million-dollar plan to improve the safety of these nuclear power reactors. This report describes the (1) goals and scope of the international assistance, (2) United States' planned and ongoing assistance efforts, (3) impact of the assistance provided, and (4) potential for closing the highest-risk reactors.

GAO found that: (1) as of 1994, international donors have pledged about $785 million to improve the safety of civil nuclear power reactors in the former Soviet Union and central and eastern Europe; (2) the long term goal of international assistance is to shut down the most dangerous nuclear power reactors, replace these reactors with alternative energy sources, and improve host countries' nuclear regulatory agencies; (3) only about 7 percent of the proposed projects have been completed; (4) the United States has spent $18 million for nuclear safety improvements in Russia, Ukraine, and eastern Europe; (5) much of U.S. assistance is designed to provide training for reactor operators and nuclear regulators and fire safety and computer equipment; (6) the effectiveness of international assistance is difficult to quantify because there is a lack of reliable data on Soviet equipment; (7) some nuclear safety projects have been delayed due to contractor disputes over liability protection; (8) international assistance efforts may not result in safer reactors or the closure of the riskiest reactors and may actually encourage the continued operation of these reactors; and (9) although international agencies may encounter difficulties in promoting the closure of Soviet-designed reactors because host countries depend on nuclear power to meet their energy and export needs, the United States has agreed with Russia and Ukraine to study alternative energy options and phase out the riskiest reactors.