Backup fuel storage

 disaster site, oil depot

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Diesel oil is used as backup fuel for the Norilsk-Taimyr Energy (NTEK) coal-fired combined heat and power plant. A diesel fuel storage tank failed when the permafrost it was built on began to soften. A statement from Nornickel stated: "Due to sudden subsidence of supports which served for more than 30 years without problems, the diesel fuel storage tank was damaged, resulting in a fuel leak."

The spill affected an immediate area of 180,000 square metres (44 acres), then the nearby Ambarnaya and Daldykan rivers, contaminating an area of 350 square kilometres (135 square miles). Cleanup efforts were anticipated to be difficult as there are no roads and the rivers are too shallow for boats and barges. It was estimated the immediate cost of emergency relief activities would be 10 billion roubles (US$146 million), with a total clean-up cost of 100 billion roubles (US$1.5 billion), which would take five to 10 years.