Bangladeshi representatives to visit Russian nuclear power plants

A Bangladeshi delegation will visit Russia later this week to discuss nuclear cooperation and visit nuclear power plants, Russia’s nuclear chief said on Thursday.

“A large representative delegation from Bangladesh will arrive this week. We will take them to our nuclear power stations so that they can take a look around,” Sergei Kiriyenko, head of Russia’s atomic energy corporation Rosatom, said during a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

In May, Russia signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with Russia, pledging to help the energy hungry south Asian nation build its first nuclear power station.

“We have agreed with the prime minister of Bangladesh that we will present a funding mechanism,” Kiriyenko said.

Bangladesh is planning to build an NPP at Rooppur, 200 km north-west of the capital Dhaka.

The country is seeking Russia’s assistance in setting up two nuclear reactors with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts each.

Under the deal, Rosatom will help Bangladesh design, construct and operate nuclear reactors. It will also supply the reactors with fuel, import spent nuclear fuel, manage nuclear waste, and provide training.

Source: RIA Novosti

Bangladesh, Russia signs nuclear deal

Bangladesh has signed a cooperation deal with Russia which will led to two nuclear power plants being built in the energy-starved South Asian nation, an official said Saturday.

Under the deal, signed in Moscow on Friday, Russia will help construct the two 1,000-megawatt nuclear plants in the north of the country, Bangladesh’s nuclear energy commission chief Mosharraf Hossain told AFP.

“It is the first step towards setting up the two nuclear power plants. A full-fledged agreement will be signed in September when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will visit Moscow,” he said.

The agreement was signed by Bangladesh’s junior minister for science and technology Yeafesh Osman and Sergei Kiriyenko, the head of the Russian atomic energy corporation, Hossain said.

Under the deal, Russia will help set up two reactors near the town of Rooppur, as well as supply nuclear fuel, take back spent fuel and train Bangladeshi officials to run and maintain the plants.

Hossain said the first of the two plants is expected to generate power by 2017, and each would cost at least 1.5 billion dollars.

Bangladesh has long suffered severe power outages due to demands imposed by its fast-growing economy, which has been growing at around six percent a year since 2004.

The crisis has worsened this year, as the gap between demand and supply shot up to 2,000 megawatt or half of the daily production due to years of under-investment.

The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank have said the country’s economic growth would slide to five percent a year — the worst performance in eight years — largely due to the worsening energy crisis.

In 2007, Bangladesh received approval from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the industry’s global watchdog, to set up a nuclear power plant.

Hossain said the government needed to build the plants as the country’s main source of energy, natural gas, was fast depleting and could run out in a decade.

Source: Yahoo! News

Bangladesh to sign nuclear energy agreement with Russia

Bangladesh will sign a deal with Russia to build two nuclear power plants at a cost of at least three billion dollars in the electricity-starved Asian nation, Dhaka’s atomic energy chief said Sunday.

The two sides would sign the agreement when Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visits Russia later this year, said Mosharraf Hossain. “We have finalised the deal. The cabinet early this week approved the draft,” he said.

Russia will build the 1,000-megawatt plants near Bangladesh’s northern town of Rooppur, with the projects expected to be finished by 2017.

Bangladesh has long suffered severe power outages due to demands imposed by its fast-growing economy, which has been growing at around six percent a year since 2004.

But the crisis has worsened this year, as the gap between demand and supply shot up due to years of under-investment in new power plants.

The International Monetary Fund last week said the country’s economic growth would slide to five percent a year — the worst performance in eight years — largely due to the worsening energy crisis.

In 2007, Bangladesh received approval from the International Atomic Energy Agency, the industry’s global watchdog, to set up a nuclear power plant.

Experts say Bangladesh’s gas reserves are also fast depleting, forcing the country to look for alternative sources of energy.

Source: Yahoo! News / AFP

MoU binding Bangladesh and Russia on nuclear power plant

Bangladesh and Russia Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to enhance cooperation between the two countries in peaceful use of nuclear energy.

Main purpose of the MoU signed between the state-owned Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) and the Russian State Atomic Energy Corporation-Rosatom, is to take necessary steps for setting up a 600-1000 MW power plant in Bangladesh, officials said.

“This is a great moment for us. Through signing of this agreement, we are moving forward to implement our election commitment to build up a nuclear power project,” Science and ICT State Minister Yeafesh Osman said at the signing ceremony.

NN Spasskiy, Deputy Director General of Rosatom, who signed the agreement on Russian part, said, “This agreement will enable us to provide avenue for cooperation in peaceful use of nuclear energy. But one thing is in our mind to design and build Bangladesh’s first nuclear power plant.”

BAEC acting chairman Mosharraf Hossain signed the MoU on behalf of his organization.

Both sides, however, termed the MoU a very preliminary stage after an initial negotiation. If negotiation proceeds on, a state level agreement will be signed later.

The science and ICT state minister Osman said that Bangladesh has earlier signed similar agreements with China and the United States.

“We will seek proposals from other countries and finally accept the one which will be the most competitive for Bangladesh,” he said.

The state minister said it might take 4-5 years to implement the planned 600-1000 MW nuclear power plant in Rooppur site, in Bangladesh’s western Pabna district, about 200 km from capital Dhaka. The cost of the plant might be 1.5-2 billion U.S. dollars.

Spasskiy, also head of Russian delegates who arrived here on Tuesday, said Russia is confident that its proposal will be “quite competitive.”

Official sources said the MoU includes taking necessary measures for installation of reactors for power generation and development of other infrastructures for setting up a nuclear power plant, supply of energy for the plant and operation and maintenance and also the waste management of the plant.

A Bangladeshi delegation is now planning to visit Russia to see Russia’s nuclear power plants and also may hold final negotiation.

Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in March told the national parliament that her government, which took office on Jan.6 this year, will set up a nuclear power plant to meet the growing demand for power.

Source: ChinaView News