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Radioactive coal to be shipped from Bishkek Thermal Power Plant

Oil&Gas Materials 11 January 2012 13:27 (UTC +04:00)

A shipment of radioactive coal from the Bishkek Thermal Power Plant (TPP) will be completed by mid-February, KyrTAG reports with reference to Bishkek TPP director Yuri Frik on Wednesday.

"According to contractual obligations, work on the shipment of highly radioactive coal will take about 45 working days, meaning the work is expected to be completed by mid-February. At present the passage of the loaded wagons through Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan to the disembarkation point is being studied with the relevant railways," Mr Frik said.

He said: "The procedure of shipping coal is divided into two phases. At the first phase coal should be moved from the upper layers of the main stack to the prepared area which is in close proximity to the railway line. In the second the coal will be shipped in wagons with the help of a loader. At present, work is underway to move the coal to the shipment area."

"Contracts were signed with two private companies: LOI and the Chu Ecological Laboratory to ship the coal being the only enterprises in Kyrgyzstan specialising in work with radioactive substances," Mr Frik said.

According to radiologist Narynbek Kazybayev at the State Sanitary Epidemiological Surveillance Department, 'the risk of using radioactive coal by the population is fully excluded'.

He said: "The risk is completely safe due to the fact that the coal is stored in the fuel unit which is located inside the protected area of the TPP and access is limited.

"The measurements showed that radiation diapason ranges from 45-150 micro roentgens per hour at the surface. The indicators of the larger factions reach 200 micro roentgens per hour."

It should be recalled that a criminal case was filed on radioactive coal delivery to the Bishkek thermal power plant from Kazakhstan to Kyrgyzstan. An investigation is underway.

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