Strategic Master Plan (SMP) Phase 2

The decommissioning of submarines and service ships, management of spent nuclear fuel and waste and environmental rehabilitation of contaminated sites in north-west Russia is an extremely complex undertaking.

A need for a comprehensive and holistic approach to the challenges of dealing with the decommissioning of nuclear submarines and service vessels, spent nuclear fuel and waste and the environmental rehabilitation in this region has been recognised by many parties involved in CEG and other co-operative processes. The EBRD also considered that an overall plan for the region, taking into account all the external parameters which influence decisions for the region, should be the top priority preceding financing decisions on individual projects.

With funding from NDEP, efforts began in 2003 to prepare a Strategic Master Plan (SMP) – a comprehensive decommissioning programme. The SMP is envisaged to serve as a framework for the definition and identification of projects providing a tool for decisions to be made by the authorities of the Russian Federation and the Donor Governments’ evaluation and financing decisions taking account of safety, security and cost effectiveness and environmental benefits of the projects.

Concluded in 2007, it delivered a concrete project pipeline developed by top Russian specialists and reviewed by the international Expert Advisory Group. It was supported by an extensive Strategic Environmental Assessment commissioned by the EBRD, the first to be conducted in Russia.

Recognising this groundbreaking achievement, Russia adopted the SMP as the basis for the management of the whole nuclear programme in north‑west Russia.

The SMP is now employed on a daily basis by Rosatom to monitor the progress and to coordinate remediation activities in the region.