Bangladesh
Uranium Consignment Third consignment of uranium reaches Rooppur
Own Correspondent, Dhaka, 13 October 2023: The third shipment of fresh nuclear fuel (uranium) of the first unit of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant has arrived at Ishwardi in Pabna. The working Bangladeshi and Russian nationals welcomed the uranium-carrying vehicle as it entered the Rooppur project area around 9:30 am on Friday.
Engineer Ashraful Islam, site director of the power plant, said that on Thursday (October 12) the third consignment of uranium from Russia arrived in Dhaka by special plane. Uranium was brought from Dhaka to Rooppur project by road on Friday. Four more shipments of uranium will arrive in the country in phases.
Ashish Kumar Sanal, In-charge of Ishwardi Pakshi Highway Police Outpost, told Jago News that the third consignment of uranium was brought to Rooppur by road through maximum security. The road was closed to other vehicles for a while when the fleet of vehicles carrying uranium arrived on the road. Earlier, the first consignment of uranium reached Dhaka by air from Russia on September 28 and was brought to Rooppur by road from Dhaka on September 29. Then on October 5, the second consignment of uranium from Russia reached Dhaka and was brought from Dhaka to Rooppur on October 6.
The country's first nuclear power plant is scheduled to start producing 1,200 megawatts of electricity in the first unit in March 2024. The second unit could be commissioned next year by mid-2025. The two units will produce a total of 2,400 megawatts of electricity.
The cost of construction of Rooppur nuclear power plant is about one lakh 14 thousand crores. Out of this, the government is giving 22 thousand 52 crore 91 lakh 27 thousand taka, while 91 thousand 40 crores taka has been received as loan assistance from Russia. The Rooppur nuclear power plant is being implemented through an agreement between the Government of Bangladesh and the Russian Federation.
