Sergei Kiriyenko, currently on a week-long visit to the United States that ends May 24, said at a press conference Tuesday that supplies of Russian low-enriched uranium to the United States were a purely commercial rather than a political issue, and were in both sides' interest.

"We believe that this is a commercial issue, which we intend to resolve in the framework of existing U.S. legislation," Kiriyenko said.

"We are not demanding any preferential treatment, any benefits or special conditions, but we are demanding equal rights and equal opportunities for competition on the U.S. market.

"Restrictions on imports from Russia of low-enriched uranium have been in force since the Soviet era. Russia is currently allowed to operate on the U.S. market without a 116 percent import duty only through US Enrichment Corp. (USEC), a special intermediary agent, under a 1993 HEU-LEU agreement under which Russian high-enriched uranium from nuclear weapons is blended down to its more benign low-enriched form for use in U.S. civilian nuclear reactors.

Kiriyenko said talks on lifting restrictions would not affect the existing HEU-LEU agreement, but would put an end to USEC's monopoly as the sole intermediary for sales of Russian nuclear products and services on the U.S. market.

"We believe that the HEU-LEU agreement should be carried out as established, and we will certainly meet our obligations under this agreement," Kiriyenko said. "But we think that Russian companies should also have the opportunity to freely supply their products and services on the American market, and that U.S. companies should have the right to freely purchase Russian [nuclear] goods and services at open market prices and without any intermediaries."

Kiriyenko said he had discussed the issue with officials from more than 20 U.S. energy companies that generate more than 50 percent of the country's electricity, and that many of them had fully supported the idea of lifting restrictions.

"We are ready to supply goods and services, and the American companies that control this [electricity] market want to receive these goods," Kiriyenko said, adding that Russia is willing to do business with any U.S. company, including USEC, but as an equal partner.

As Russia looks to diversify its markets for uranium supplies, Kiriyenko also said the country had plenty of reserves for the foreseeable future."We have plenty of uranium reserves," he said. "For our internal consumption, they will be enough for more than 50 years."He also said Russia planned to increase tenfold investment in uranium prospecting and production.

Source: RIA Novosti

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