DHAKA: Bangladesh has received its first delivery of nuclear fuel, meaning the country has officially joined the world’s ‘nuclear’ countries’ list.
In November 2017, construction started on the Rooppur nuclear plant 160km from Dhaka. The plant features two Russian VVER-1200 reactors; construction of the first unit started in November 2017, and it will be commissioned in 2024. Construction of the second unit started in July 2018. Russian company Rosatom is executing the project, which will have an initial life cycle of sixty years, with a further twenty-year extension possible.
Rosatom’s director, Alexei Likhachev, said that this day marks a new stage in the development of Russian-Bangladeshi ties. For Rosatom, it is a great honour to run a project that will ensure a stable power supply and will help to preserve the unique nature of Bangladesh for future generations.
Russian leader Vladimir Putin attended the ceremony organized to celebrate the announcement, which was held via weblink. In a speech, Putin highlighted the close relations between Russia and Bangladesh.
He said that once the plant was at full capacity, it would supply around 10 percent of Bangladesh’s energy needs in an environmentally friendly way.
Electricity in Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, 85 percent of the population has access to electricity, up from 20 percent in 2000. Gas still accounts for most of the nation’s electricity production despite the share of hydropower, wind, and solar power increasing. Overall, electricity demand is increasing rapidly. In 2009, the capacity was 5GW, but it had risen to 25GW by 2021. Around 5 percent of government expenditure is reserved for power and energy.
Sama Bilbao y León, World Nuclear Association director-general, said that this represents a major contribution to helping Bangladesh reach its carbon emission reduction targets whilst boosting energy security and reliability. The importance of this moment extends beyond Bangladesh – with the international nuclear community committed to accelerating new build projects, the Rooppur power plant is a powerful symbol of this shared commitment.
