Rooppur N-power plant: Bangladesh, Russia agree on spent fuel management plan

Bangladesh and Russia have approved and 'initialed' the draft agreement on spent fuel management for Rooppur nuclear power plant.

Senior Correspondentbdnews24.com
Published : 18 March 2017, 09:17 AM
Updated : 18 March 2017, 09:17 AM

Both sides also agreed to sign the final agreement “soonest possible”, the Russian embassy said on Saturday in a statement.

This followed a round of consultations between the two sides on Mar 14 and 15 in Dhaka where they discussed a wide range of issues related to the construction of the Rooppur nuclear power plant.

Spent fuel management agreement was one of the main focus on the consultations.

State Corporation ROSATOM’s Deputy Director General Nikolay Spasskiy, Rostechnadzor’s Deputy Chairperson Alexey Ferapontov and Russian Ambassador to Bangladesh Alexander Ignatov represented the Russian side.

Officials of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority and Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission represented Bangladesh.

Russia is helping Bangladesh to set up its first nuclear power plants at Rooppur to meet energy demands. The first reactor is expected to be launched in 2023.

Officials earlier indicated that Russia would take back the highly radioactive waste products after a certain period of time for final disposal.

Works related to the completion of the construction have also been discussed at the consultation.

Both the sides came to a “common understanding” that the main task is to ensure the “first concrete” works at Unit-1 within the agreed time frame.

A special working group has been created to provide “uninterrupted” cooperation between the two regulators, customer and general contractor.

The Russian delegation also visited the Rooppur construction site and joined a working meeting there, the embassy said.

Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority Chairman Naiyyum Choudhury, Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission Chairman Engr. Md Monzurul Haque and JSC "Atomstroyexport" chief managers also took part in the meeting.  

“The preliminary outcomes of the work will be discussed at the next Joint Coordination Committee meeting in Moscow in June or July this year,” the embassy said, following the consultations, a “joint protocol” would be adopted.