VIENNA, September 26. /TASS/. The first power unit of Bangladesh's first nuclear power plant Rooppur will be connected to the power grid in 2024, the country's Minister of Science and Technology Yeafesh Osman said speaking at the 67th General Assembly of the IAEA.

"We expect that the first batch of nuclear fuel will be delivered to the Rooppur nuclear power plant at the end of September 2023. We believe that the first unit will be connected to the grid next year and will become an important source of energy as part of our power balance. The second power unit will be put into operation a year later," he said.

The minister thanked the Russian state corporation Rosatom for the construction of the Rooppur nuclear power plant despite all difficulties.

"We would like to thank the Russian state agency Rosatom for actively working on this project [Rooppur NPP] despite the difficulties caused by political reasons and the COVID-19 virus pandemic," Osman said.

Rooppur NPP

The Rooppur nuclear power plant with two VVER-1200 reactors is under construction 160 km from the capital of Bangladesh, Dhaka. For the first nuclear power plant in Bangladesh, a Russian project with VVER-1200 reactors was selected, successfully implemented at two power units of the Novovoronezhskaya NPP. This is an evolutionary project of generation III+, which fully meets international safety requirements. Construction of the plant began in 2021. The design and construction of the facility is carried out by the engineering division of Rosatom. The life cycle of VVER-1200 reactors is 60 years with the possibility of extending the operating life for another 20 years. Currently, construction of the first and second power units of the plant is underway.