November 5, 2007 (LPAC) -- There is no alternative to the development of the atomic energy industry in light of a consistent decrease in hydrocarbon deposits, Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Ivanov emphasized during a Nov. 2, meeting of the government commission on industry, transport, and technology. He said that Russia needed to visibly increase nuclear power production, to escape energy shortages in the future.

Ivanov reiterated that the government had approved the federal target program on the development of the atomic energy industry from 2007 to 2010. According to the program, nuclear power should account for up to 18 percent of Russia's energy production in 2015 and for 30 percent in 2030.