The fifth shipment of uranium for the first unit of the under-construction Rooppur Nuclear Power Project in Pabna has arrived in Rooppur amid tight security.
A convoy carrying uranium entered the project area around 9:25am on Friday. Earlier, the last shipment reached Rooppur last Friday morning.
Pakshi Highway police Officer-in-Charge (OC) Ashish Kumar Sanal confirmed that the fifth consignment of uranium has been safely transported to the under-construction Rooppur nuclear power project.
He also mentioned that the highway underwent special security arrangements during the transportation process. To ensure the safety of the convoy, all traffic on the Natore-Kushtia-Pabna highway was temporarily halted from 8:15am to 9:15am. Following the successful delivery of the uranium to the Rooppur nuclear project, normal traffic flow resumed on the affected route.
Earlier, the first shipment of Rooppur nuclear power project fuel arrived in Bangladesh on September 28. The next day, on September 29, fuel was taken from the project area under special security measures.
The handover was officially made in the presence of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Russian President Vladimir Putin in a video conference on October 5. Through this, Bangladesh entered the nuclear club.
According to the agreement, Russia will supply the fuel used for power generation in Rooppur for free for three years.
The RNPP project aims to establish a 2,400MW nuclear power plant with two 1,200MW capacity units. The first unit's reactor was loaded in October 2021, while the second unit's reactor was installed in October 2022.
Upon loading the nuclear fuel into the reactors, power can be generated for one year before reloading is necessary.
The RNPP project was conceived in 2009, and an agreement with Russia on the "Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy" was signed on May 13, 2009. Subsequent agreements and contracts have led to its realization, with the first unit projected to become operational in July 2024 and the second in July 2025.
The development places Bangladesh in the esteemed company of 32 other nations around the world that utilize nuclear energy for various purposes.
As of May 2023, there were 436 nuclear reactors in operation in 32 countries around the world. The United States had the largest number of nuclear power reactors in operation at the time, at 93 units.
