Just days after the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (BAERA) issued the first site licence for the Rooppur nuclear power plant the country’s cabinet has approved the draft of an intergovernmental agreement that will see Russia provide USD 11.38B in credit for the project.
The licence – allowing preliminary site works, including geological surveys, to begin at Rooppur – was presented to Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission chairman Ali Zulqarnain by BAERA chairman Naiyyum Chowdhury, in a ceremony held in Dhaka.
The ceremony was followed by the second meeting of the Joint Coordinating Committee on the construction of the Rooppur plant. This was attended by Nikolay Spassky, Rosatom deputy director general, Alexey Ferapontov, deputy chairman of Russian nuclear regulator Rostechnadzor, and Valery Limarenko, president of ASE Group. According to Rosatom, the meeting discussed construction of the two 1200 MWe NPP-2006 VVER units and focused on the entry into force of a general contract for the construction of the plant, for which a further site licence is required.
Days after the licence ceremony, Bangladesh’s cabinet approved the draft of the credit agreement with Russia. According to reports, the Russian government would provide $11.38 billion as credit, with the remaining cost of the $12.65 billion project being met with Bangladeshi state-funded grants. He said the agreement was likely to be signed in July or August. The two countries signed a general contract for the project on 25 December 2015.