Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant unit 2 receives key equipment delivery

Transport lock, a part of the nuclear fuel handling system for unit 2 of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP), has been delivered to the construction site.

According to Rosatom, the Russian contractor of the nuclear power plant, the transport lock will soon be installed at the reactor building which is highly accurate and most labour-intensive work.

The main function of transport lock is to ensure retention of radioactive substances within the containment, as well as fire protection. The lock, a cylindrical structure weighing 235 tonnes, is 12.7 metres long and 10 metres in diameter.

During normal operation of the power plant, the lock carries out the transportation of cargoes to the reactor plant maintenance level for equipment repair, intake of fresh fuel, and removal of spent fuel.

Implementation of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project—construction of the units and supply of equipment and installation, start-up, and adjustment work are continuing.

"This allows us to speak with certainty that Rosatom efficiently fulfils the responsibility undertaken towards its Bangladeshi partner and guarantees reliability and safety of its technologies for the well-being of the present and future generations of Bangladesh," Alexey Deriy, vice president of ASE Projects in Bangladesh, said.

Rooppur NPP is Bangladesh's first nuclear power project and is being implemented with Russia's technical and financial support.

The previous government had aimed to start power generation from the plant by the end of 2024, but it was prematurely inaugurated last year ahead of the general election by the former prime minister.

Meanwhile, Russian Ambassador to Bangladesh Alexander Manatytskiy, following a meeting with foreign affairs adviser Md Touhid Hossain on 15 August, has said that there may be some delay in the construction process of the power plant.

The ambassador said, "I can understand that there may be somewhat of a delay in the construction process of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plan, given the present circumstances. However, the delay will not be too long."

Experts and insiders of the project, however, believe that it might take much longer to start power generation from the project as the payment to the Russian contractor faces US sanctions and the power transmission lines are not ready as well to transmit power from the project.

The project hosts two units with a total capacity of 2,400 megawatts. The first unit is now getting ready for start-up. Once fully functional, the nuclear power plant is expected to ensure an uninterrupted supply of quality electricity and play an important role in maintaining basal load.

The latest generation 3+ Russian VVER 1200 reactors are being used for power generation. This reactor meets all international safety requirements. 

ASE JSC, the engineering division of Russia's state corporation Rosatom is the general designer and general contractor of Rooppur NPP.