South Africa is working with Rosatom State Corporation on a floating nuclear power plant project to address the country's ongoing electricity crisis, Ryan Collier, CEO of Rosatom Central and South Africa, told Sputnik Africa on the sidelines of Atomexpo-2024 in Sirius, Russia.
"I think some of the key aspects and key advantages of floating nuclear power plants is that you are able to get all the benefits of nuclear energy in a much shorter time frame," he said.
Another advantage of the floating nuclear project, according to Collier, is that South Africa will only pay for the electricity, "as opposed to having to invest in a large nuclear project," since all construction costs will be covered by Rosatom, which owns the fleet.
However, Collier, a South African, noted that his country may need several floating nuclear power plants, or a combination of floating and land-based small modular reactors, to meet its large electricity needs.
"We believe that for newcomer countries, this would be very beneficial, and also we believe that from a licensing and safeguards perspective, it will be a lot easier for them to get power on the grid from floating nuclear power plants," he said.
Russia's Rosatom has piqued the interest of African countries in nuclear energy because it has proven over the years to be a trusted global nuclear supplier and a reliable partner, Collier said.
"Russia is very well known in terms of nuclear technology. Rosatom has been around for 65 years," the acting CEO of Rosatom Central and South Africa said. "Russia really is seen as a very reliable partner in terms of nuclear energy, and I think that's why many African nations are interested in working with Rosatom in terms of their nuclear programs."
Speaking about the ongoing Atomexpo-2024, Collier, a South African, argued that the event is useful for African participants thanks to the wide range of energy solutions offered by the Russian state nuclear corporation.
"Rosatom is working in various different fields as opposed to just nuclear, so we've made some very good progress in terms of batteries as well as in terms of hydropower plants on the continents as well. So it's been quite an exciting conference," he said.