VILNIUS, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Lithuania shut down its Soviet-era nuclear power plant on Thursday, raising fears of increased energy dependency on Russia and further damage to an economy already reeling from recession.
The Baltic state was obliged under the terms of its 2004 accession to the European Union to close the Ignalina plant, which has the same kind of reactors as Chernobyl, the site of the world’s worst nuclear accident in 1986.
The last reactor at the Ignalina plant was closed at 11 p.m. (2100 GMT). The other had been shut at the end of 2004.
"The reactor was shut down according to plan, the radiation level was unchanged," Viktor Shevaldin, the plant’s veteran chief, told Reuters. No power disturbances were reported after the reactor was shut down.
Some analysts have forecast rising power prices, dealing a further blow to the economy, and more dependence on power supplies from Russia. But Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius was calm.
"There will be no catastrophe after the closure. We are ready to supply as much electricity as needed," he told Reuters.
Lithuania relied on nuclear power for more than 70 percent of its energy generation, second only to France.
"We have been working here for 25 years, and I have conflicting feelings today. In essence, I feel regret," Ignalina worker Aleksei Zarechensky told Reuters Television.
The government said the country’s fossil fuel power plants will generate the bulk of the 9.1 terawatt-hours (TWh) electricity needed in 2010, while the rest will be imported.
The Elektrenai fossil fuel plant, with a maximum capacity of 1,800 megawatts (MW), will become the major domestic generation source. This means Lithuania will have to import more gas from its sole supplier, Russia, to generate electricity.
Russia has been a reliable supplier of gas to all three Baltic states, but Moscow’s rows with Ukraine over gas supplies have raised nerves about energy security in Lithuania too.
"Lithuania’s increasing import dependence on natural gas after the closure of Ignalina…is clearly raising import related risks," leading bank Swedbank said in a report.
Lithuania plans to build another nuclear power plant, though not until 2018-2020. It also aims to build power links with Poland and Sweden.
The government has said electricity bills for households will rise by one-third from 2010. Analysts have said the shutdown could cut gross domestic product growth by 1 to 1.5 percentage points, and add one percentage point to inflation.
GDP is expected to contract 15.2 percent in 2009 and 4 percent in 2010.
"As local energy supply will diminish and prices rise, the recovery of economic growth will be more difficult, and for some industries and enterprises this could be the final bell," the Swedbank report added. (Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
