Fuel loading at Rooppur nuclear plant begins today

After a decade of preparation, infrastructure development and complex technical capability building, Bangladesh is finally set to enter the era of nuclear power generation. Fuel loading for the first unit of the country's maiden nuclear power plant, Rooppur, will begin today, Tuesday, April 28.

The fuel loading ceremony will be held in the afternoon following the completion of all preparations after receiving the commissioning licence from the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority on April 16.

Rosatom Director General Alexey Likhachev, accompanied by an 18-member delegation, is scheduled to arrive in Dhaka this morning to join the ceremony. According to government sources, he will meet Prime Minister Tarique Rahman in Dhaka before travelling to the Rooppur project site by helicopter.

Science and Technology Minister Fakir Mahbub Anam, along with the relevant Russian minister and high-level representatives, will be present at the ceremony to inaugurate the fuel loading process.

The fuel loading process is expected to take around 45 days to complete, said Science and Technology Secretary Anwar Hossain. If everything goes according to plan, at least 300 megawatts of electricity from the first unit will be connected to the national grid by the end of July or early August. Once full-capacity production begins by the end of this year or early next year, this unit will generate 1,200 megawatts of electricity.

The Rooppur project, built on the banks of the Padma River in Ishwardi, Pabna, has cost approximately 12.65 billion US dollars. The plant, constructed with financial and technical assistance from Russia, uses modern VVER-1200 reactor technology. When both units reach full production, a total of 2,400 megawatts of electricity will be generated, which is expected to meet a significant portion of the country's total power demand.