ASTANA. April 7 (Interfax) - Kazakhstan and Russia may sign the agreement for construction of a nuclear power plant (NPP) in Kazakhstan in the first half of this year, said Vitaly Ryabov, a representative of Rosatom in Kazakhstan.

"The principal agreement [for NPP construction] should be discussed in detail in order to facilitate the contracts preparation process in the future and allow us to start the construction. The required approval process is now underway. The project was once approved by the Russian authorities. However, the approval process was hindered in Kazakhstan due to the reorganization of the ministries and the introduction of new requirements. Hopefully, all issues will be resolved soon. (