BAEC and ATOMSTROYEXPORT to sign pact within a week
Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) will sign an agreement with ATOMSTROYEXPORT in Moscow, to start pre-construction work for setting up the much hyped Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) project at Rooppur in Pabna, by this month. Before signing of this agreement, the ministry of science and technology (MOST) has prepared two different proposals, that will be placed at the meetings of the cabinet committee on purchase, and the cabinet committee on economic affairs, to seek approval for awarding the pre-construction work to the Russian company.
As per the scope of the pre-construction work, ATOMSTROYEXPORT will conduct feasibility evaluation (FE), environment impact assessment (EIA), development and engineering survey, development of the comprehensive programme of engineering survey, anthropogenic conditions at the NPP area and site, engineering and hydro-meteorological survey, engineering and geodetic survey, seismological and seismic-tectonic studies, engineering and aero-meteorological survey, FE development, EIA development, pre-design works, engineering and geological survey and engineering survey, and environmental studies.
All the survey and the studies have to be completed within 18 months from the day of signing of the agreement, according to the proposed agreement.
For conducting these works, the government will pay of USD 45.90 million to ATOMSTROYEXPORT.
The state minister for MOST, Yeafesh Osman, told The Independent that the ministry will send a team to Moscow, to sign the agreement, after getting approvals from the cabinet committee on purchase and the cabinet committee on economic affairs.
“We are ready to start the pre-construction work of setting up two 1,000-megawatt nuclear power plants, under the project, from this month,” he said.
“We’ll conduct all kinds of tests, prepare design of the plant, human resource training, and site development work for the project, under the first phase work plan,” he added.
“After completing work under the first phase of the project, we’ll start the main construction work of the proposed power plant. It’ll take five years to complete the work,” said the state minister.
The minister added that at least 62 tests would be conducted for setting up the power plant, and 26 of them will be conduct by Bangladeshis.
Sources in the MOST said that 10 per cent of the USD 45.90 million pre-construction budget will be paid by the Bangladesh government to the Russian company, in advance, within 30 days of signing the agreement.
The remaining 90 per cent money would be paid, as per the agreement, under the Russian credit of USD 500 million for the project, which is estimated to cost USD 1.5 billion.
Sources said the State Atomic Energy Corporation of Russia (Rosatom) authorities will provide funds for the nuclear power plant project, on a turn-key basis, as per the agreement signed between Rosatom and the Bangladesh government, on November 2, 2011.
Rosatom will provide fuel, throughout the entire life-span of the power plant, and take the spent fuel away, for safe storage. The power extracted from one gram of uranium is equal to the power derived from 3 tonnes of coal, or 2.6 tonnes of fossil fuel.
Bangladesh and Russia had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on May 13, and a framework agreement on May 21, 2009.
The cabinet approved the nuclear power plant cooperation agreement on August 1, 2011, while it approved the security and legal framework development cooperation agreement on October 31, 2011.
-With The Independent input
