Arctic playing more active role during conversion to climate-neutral economy & Arctic Economic Council sign cooperation memorandum

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The first of these two articles  tell us that Russia will expand its nuclear reactors – flow power plants in the Arctic .  To many persons,  this seems extremely risky

 

Korchunov: Arctic playing more active role during conversion to climate-neutral economy

04 June 2021

https://arctic.ru/economics/20210604/994684.html

The Foreign Ministry’s Ambassador at Large and Senior Arctic Official of Russia to the Arctic Council Nikolai Korchunov has addressed the participants at an Arctic Economic Council meeting at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum and noted that the Arctic was playing a more active role during the conversion to a climate-neutral economy. The Arctic Council’s activities also facilitate this process.

I would like to point out the Arctic’s growing role during the energy sector’s conversion to a low-carbon and climate-neutral economy, Korchunov said. This process is facilitated by the Arctic Council’s resources and materials as well as by projects being implemented by companies whose representatives have gathered at this table, he added.

In turn, Kirill Komarov, First Deputy Director General for Corporate Development and International Business of Rosatom, noted that the state corporation operating the Arctic infrastructure was called upon to provide the region with environmentally friendly low-carbon solutions.

“First of all, this implies low-capacity nuclear reactors. For example, the first floating nuclear power plant is already operating in Chukotka. Today, we have to accomplish specific tasks, and we are seriously interested in expanding this line because this station’s capacities are enough to power a city with a population of about 100,000,” Komarov said.

Earlier, Korchunov said that cooperation between the Arctic countries could play an important role in implementing the Paris Agreement on climate change. The ambassador noted that, as a region providing countries with resources whose use meets the climate-neutral economy concept, the Arctic could contribute to the agreement’s implementation.  

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St. Petersburg, Arctic Economic Council sign cooperation memorandum

 

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02 June 2021

St. Petersburg, Arctic Economic Council sign cooperation memorandum

https://arctic.ru/economics/20210602/994571.html

St. Petersburg and the Arctic Economic Council have signed a memorandum on expanding cooperation in such fields as maritime transport, energy, communications and the responsible use of natural resources.

This took place in the context of the May 20, 2021 12th Ministerial Meeting of the Arctic Council in Reykjavik where Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced the beginning of Russia’s Arctic Council chairmanship and noted the need for cooperating with the Arctic Economic Council.

“We would like to interact actively with the Arctic Economic Council. < … > In 2020, we established the Arctic science and production cluster consisting of manufacturing enterprises and organizations dealing with research and education. This platform makes it possible to work on joint projects for the Arctic zone. The document will allow us to work on a broader basis with the Council’s partners. Our goal is to develop the cluster’s enterprises,” German Shirokov, Chair of the Committee on Arctic Affairs, noted at the signing ceremony.

The memorandum sets forth interaction aspects in spheres of mutual interest, including maritime transport, energy, communications, investment and the infrastructure, as well as the responsible use of resources.

“The document also deals with Arctic tourism, and we are now actively developing such projects,” Shirokov added.

The Arctic Economic Council is a leading non-governmental forum for the promotion of cooperation, coordination and interaction between Arctic states, indigenous ethnic groups and Arctic residents for jointly addressing Arctic matters, including sustainable development and environmental protection in the Arctic. The list of Council participants includes various companies, such as startups, small and medium-sized businesses and enterprises, as well as national and international corporations operating in the Arctic.