Hasina inaugurates construction work on second unit of the Rooppur nuclear power plant

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has inaugurated construction work of the second unit of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP) in Pabna.

She left Dhaka by helicopter and inaugurated the work just after landing in Rooppur on Saturday afternoon.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister for Defence and Space Industry Yury Ivanovich Borisov, Director of International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Dohee Hahn and Science and Technology Minister Yeafesh Osman accompanied her on the trip.

Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury, Land Minister Shamshur Rahman Sherif, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam and Army Chief General Aziz Ahmed were also present at the programme.

Briefing reporters after the meeting PM's press secretary Ihsanul Karim said the prime minister thanked the Russian government for its continued support for the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant.

Hasina and Borisov expressed their happiness over existing excellent cordial relations between the two countries, the press secretary said.

The prime minister thanked the Russian Federation for its 'excellent' job as the host of the FIFA World Cup 2018, which has provided much delight to all Bangladeshis.

Recalling Russian support and contribution to Bangladesh in the 1971 Liberation War, the prime minister said Russia had made an immense contribution to post-war reconstruction and the de-mining of the Chittagong port.

Since assuming power in January 2009, the government had decided to deepen and widen Dhaka's engagement with Moscow in a mutually beneficial manner, she said. 
Sheikh Haisna said her government has plan to construct more nuclear power plants as the use of renewable energy for electricity is necessary for Bangladesh's development.

The Russian deputy prime minister said the cooperation between Bangladesh and his country was based on equal footing and that Russia would continue to cooperate with Bangladesh in various fields for mutual benefits of both countries.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the first unit of RNPP project on Nov 30 of last year, starting work on the first phase of the main construction of the country’s first nuclear power plant.

The construction of the main structure is expected to be end within 68 months from that time, according to Russian company Atomstroyexport.

The government believes, at least 1200MW unit of electricity from the first nuclear plant would be added to the national grid by mid-2023. The second unit of the power plant, which would generate the same amount of power, will be launched by 2024.

The Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (BAERA) has granted the design and  construction license to the state-run Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) for implementing the second unit of construction work last week.

The mega project is being constructed on 1,062 acres of land in Rooppur. The first phrase of infrastructure for the project has already been completed.

The first nuclear site of Bangladesh is being constructed with the assistance of Russia. The Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission signed an agreement with Atomstroy export, a subsidiary organisation of Rosatom, to build the project in 2015.

The initial contract for the project, worth $12.65 billion, was inked in December 2016.