Govt to get nuclear fuel from Russia by Oct

The government will get first batch of nuclear fuel for Unit-1 of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant from the Russian Federation by October 2023, aiming to commence the unit by mid-2024, Bangladesh Economic Review 2023 said.

“All preparations are being made to take delivery of the first batch of the nuclear fuel of Unit-1 from the Russian Federation to the project area by October 2023,” a top official of Rooppur nuclear power plant (NPP) told the daily sun Friday.

He said the RNPP will have a meeting with ROSATOM this week to procure the nuclear fuel for unit 1 of Rooppur NPP.

According to him, the ministry of power energy and mineral resources and the ministry of science and technology will decide to commission the plant in September, 2024.

In the first half of the next year 2024, the target of performing coal and hot phase test of unit-1 and conducting reactor physical startup activities has been set, the official said.

After construction of the transmission line, establishment of physical protection system, construction of offsite telecommunication infrastructure for Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP) is properly completed in the current year, according to the economic review.

It will be possible to add Unit-1 of RNNP to the national grid as per the schedule, the finance minister said.

About 90 percent of the physical construction work and more than 60 percent of the installation work of the reactor building of the unit-1 of the RNPP with a capacity of 1200MW has been completed.

Overall implementation progress, including physical construction and installation of machinery, is approximately 80 percent, according to the RNPP authorities.

Turbine building completion is approximately 88 percent and physical construction of first colling tower up to +175 meter height is completed, the authorities also said. The commissioning work will be started after completion of physical construction and equipment installed work of unit-1 in June 2023.

Besides, about 70 percent of the physical construction work of reactor Building of Unit-2 of RNPP has been completed.

Preparations are being made to place reactor pressure vessel, steam generator and coolant pump of unit-2 in design position.

The reactor auxiliary building is approximately 55 percent completed. The construction of turbine building is approximately 65 percent completed.

The construction of first and second cooling tower of the second unit has been completed up to the height of +145 meters and +126 meters respectively. The overall progress of the physical construction work of unit 2 is approximately 55 percent.