- Russia has launched the world’s first floating nuclear reactor named Akademik Lomonosov in the Arctic region.
- The vessel is 144 metres long and 30 metres wide. It houses two nuclear reactors. It travels at a speed of 3.5 to 4.5 knots.
- The vessel will be towed 6,000 kilometres to the Siberian region of Chukotka. It will be the northernmost nuclear plant in the world.
- Rosatom, a Russian nuclear energy company, has said the Akademik Lomonosov is part of a larger plan to provide energy to remote regions in Russia and around the world. Further, it can be used to power desalination plants for countries with a shortage of fresh water.
- Environment NGO Greenpeace has called the floating nuclear reactor as “Chernobyl on Ice” and raised concerns about a nuclear disaster and nuclear waste generation.
