U.S. and Kazakhstan Reach Milestone in Nonproliferation Cooperation
The United States and the Republic of Kazakhstan reached a new milestone in a multiyear joint project to irreversibly
decommission the Soviet-era BN-350 fast breeder reactor located at the Kazakhstani port of Aktau on the Caspian Sea. The
participating governments completed a sodium processing facility that will be used to dispose of coolant from the
reactor core. This action demonstrates and reinforces the strength of the U.S.-Kazakhstani strategic relationship, and
our joint commitment to preventing the proliferation of nuclear materials.
A ceremony to celebrate the completion of the construction of the Sodium Processing Facility was held at the facility on
November 5, 2008. Representatives from the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan attending the ceremony included: the
Deputy Chairman of the Kazakhstan Atomic Energy Committee, Alexander Kim; the Director of the Labor Safety and
Environmental Protection Department of the National Atomic Company Kazatomprom, Marat Nurgaziev; the Executive Director
of the Nuclear Technology Safety Center (NTSC), Irina Tazhibayeva; and the Director BN-350 at MAEC-Kazatomprom, Genadi
Pugachev The U.S. was represented by U.S. Embassy to Kazakhstan Deputy Chief of Mission Kevin Milas and NDF Senior
Project Manager John Beasley. The U.K. was represented by Deputy Head of Mission of the British Embassy in Kazakhstan
Michael Welch.
In collaboration with experts from Kazakhstan and the United Kingdom, Department of Energy and Idaho National Laboratory
engineers served as U.S. technical experts on the design and construction of the facility. Nuvia, a British firm,
provided additional technical support. Additionally, the Nuclear Technology Safety Center (NTSC), a Kazakhstani
non-governmental organization, provided in-country project management for the Government of Kazakhstan that ensured the
facility was being constructed in a sound, safe, and ecologically responsible manner.
The construction of the sodium processing facility was funded by the Nonproliferation and Disarmament Fund
(http:www.state.gov/t/isn/ndf), a fund available to the Department of State to address unanticipated nonproliferation
and disarmament opportunities and emergencies. The Department of State appreciates the cooperation of the Government of
Kazakhstan, the Government of the United Kingdom, the NTSC, Nuvia, and the Department of Energy in this successful
effort.
ENDS