Bangladesh gets first uranium shipment from Russia for nuclear power plant

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Bangladesh gets first uranium shipment from Russia for nuclear power plant

Russia is financing 90 percent of $12.65bn project to build Bangladesh’s first nuclear power plant in Rooppur.

The Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant in Rooppur, Bangladesh, on October 4, 2023 [Abdul Goni/AFP]

Published On 6 Oct 20236 Oct 2023

Bangladesh has received the first Russian shipment of uranium fuel for its first nuclear power plant, making it the 33rd country in the world to produce nuclear energy.

The South Asian country is building the first of two nuclear power plants in collaboration with Russian state-owned atomic company Rosatom. Ninety percent of the $12.65bn project is financed through a Russian loan repayable within 28 years with a 10-year grace period.

“Today is a day of pride and joy for the people of Bangladesh,” Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said on Thursday during a video conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin that the Russian Embassy in Bangladesh called a “nuclear fuel delivery ceremony”.

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Russia’s state news agency TASS reported that the design and construction of the nuclear power plants is being carried out by the engineering division of Rosatom, and the plant will have a life cycle of 60 years with the possibility of extending its operations by 20 more years. Approximately 1,500 of the 2,000 workers who will run the plant once it is operational will be trained in Russia