Sheikh Hasina

Photo: PID

Rooppur nuclear power plant is a step towards building a smart Bangladesh: PM

She said this in a speech that was linked virtually from Ganabhaban at the uranium handover ceremony in Rooppur on Thursday, October 5. Russian President Vladimir Putin joined the ceremony from the Kremlin in Moscow. Besides, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grosso from Vienna joined the main event held at Rooppur nuclear project area virtually.

The Prime Minister said, "We think that today's Bangladesh has come a long way. We have entered the nuclear age."

The Prime Minister thanked the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, on behalf of her government, countrymen and personally, and also expressed hope that the friendship between Bangladesh and Russia will remain unbroken, as the President of Bangladesh's trusted friend, the Russian Federation, honored everyone including Bangladesh by attending the ceremony virtually.

Quoting President Putin's speech, Sheikh Hasina said, "We have just heard from President Putin that our second unit will be commissioned in 2026 and the first unit in 2024. We are moving towards that goal. Soon, 1200 MW electricity from the first unit will be connected to the national grid. This electricity will be very environment friendly."

Earlier, her government had set a target to produce electricity from the first unit by 2023 and from the second unit by 2024, the PM added.

She said, "We have formed a company called 'Nuclear Power Plant Company Bangladesh Limited' through a separate law to manage this power plant. The design and construction of the plant is being carried out keeping in mind that our nuclear power plant should not be damaged in any kind of disaster. Moreover, we have signed an agreement with the Russian Federation for the management of spent fuel. The Russian Federation has promised us that they will repatriate this spent fuel."

Russian Federation President Vladimir Putin, IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi, Rosatom Director General Alexei Likhachev spoke at the event. Minister for Science and Technology Architect Yafes Osman presided over the function.

An audio-video documentary on the production and distribution of RNPP's first batch of nuclear fuel was shown at the beginning. Where RNPP Project Director and Managing Director of NPCBL Dr. Shaukat Akbar presented the introduction of RNPP.