Bangladesh gets first uranium shipment from Russia for nuclear power plant - Reuters
Bangladesh gets first uranium shipment from Russia for nuclear power plant | Reuters
Bangladesh gets first uranium shipment from Russia for nuclear power plant
[1/5]Russian President Vladimir Putin takes part in a video link with officials, including Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi, during a ceremony to mark the arrival of the first shipment of fuel to the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant,... Acquire Licensing Rights
DHAKA, Oct 5 (Reuters) - Bangladesh received the first Russian shipment of uranium fuel for its $12.65 billion debut nuclear power plant on Thursday, making it the 33rd country in the world to produce nuclear power.
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 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 during a video conference with Russian President Vladimir Putin that the Russian Embassy in Bangladesh called a "nuclear fuel delivery ceremony" in a Facebook post.
Hasina's government is under pressure from the U.S. to hold "free and fair" elections due in January, with Washington imposing visa sanctions on some Bangladeshi officials and political party leaders.
Last month Sergei Lavrov, the first Russian foreign minister to visit Bangladesh since its 1971 independence, assured Bangladesh that Moscow was committed to completing the project on time, despite obstacles from Western sanctions over the war in Ukraine.
Construction has been delayed because of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions and the sanctions.
Due to U.S. sanctions on Moscow, Bangladesh in December denied entry to a Russian ship carrying equipment for the plant.
The first unit of the plant, with a total generation capacity of 2,400 megawatts, was due to start operation in July next year but is facing a setback over loan repayments.
Bangladesh has faced its worst electricity crisis since 2013, a Reuters analysis of government data shows, due to erratic weather and difficulty in paying for fuel imports amid declining forex reserves and a weakened currency.
Reporting by Ruma Paul; Editing by Richard Chang
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
Related Knowledge Center: ENERGY BASICS: nuclear
Nuclear energy provides almost 20 percent of the U.S. electricity supply. Advocates have called for an expanded role for nuclear as an emissions-free fuel source. But the economics of building new reactors are daunting. In addition, lingering safety concerns are an institutionalized part of the calculation of nuclear regulation, and highly radioactive nuclear waste remains a can that public officials have been inclined to kick down the road. The Energy Information Administration projects a sharp decline in nuclear power generation over the next decade, as new nuclear plants — two are planned — are more than offset by anticipated retirements of several operating reactors.