Reactor physical start-up of Rooppur NPP in Bangladesh may begin this year

NIZHNY NOVGOROD. Aug 21 (Interfax) - The Rosatom state corporation is expecting to begin reactor physical start-up at the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant in Bangladesh this year, Rosatom head Alexei Likhachev told journalists.

"The project is being implemented," Likhachev said, adding there was a slight delay in the construction of network facilities.

"We are headed towards reactor start-up this year," he said.

As reported early this year, the Rooppur NPP personnel was testing the first reactor unit upon the end of construction and assembly work.

Rosatom was planning reactor physical launch of the Rooppur NPP last year. Likhachev also said that, according to the Bangladesh government's plans, "two reactor units in a big country is just the beginning of a long journey."

It was reported earlier that the first unit of the Rooppur NPP is to be put into operation in 2025 and the second in 2025.

Rosatom is building the Rooppur NPP in Bangladesh under an intergovernmental agreement signed in 2011. It will have two reactor units with a total capacity of 2,400 MW. There is currently no nuclear power generation in energy-scarce Bangladesh.