ASTANA, June 16. /TASS/. The decision to choose Rosatom to lead the consortium for the construction of the first nuclear power plant (NPP) in Kazakhstan is definitive, without implying a revision, it reflects the republic’s interests, and it is not politicized, the press service of the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Atomic Energy reported.

"Rosatom State Corporation as the leader of the consortium was chosen at various levels: by experts in the nuclear industry, by the Agency of the Republic of Kazakhstan for Atomic Energy, the interdepartmental commission on nuclear sector development, while the assessment methodology has been confirmed by an independent international consultant, the Assystem company. Consequently, the decision made does not suggest a revision and is regarded as final within the current process for the first NPP," the report said.

Astana and Moscow have long been cooperating in the area of nuclear energy, the agency noted. "Cooperation with the company selected as the consortium leader is based on the results of a comprehensive technical and economic assessment. The choice was not political, it reflects the interests of energy security and Kazakhstan’s long-term development. Kazakhstan and Russia have long-standing strategic ties, including in the nuclear sector," the press service said.

All risks were thoroughly assessed, while Rosatom is not included in any sanctions lists, according to the report. "Rosatom is the founder of nuclear technologies in the world, and it has the most advanced and experienced nuclear school," the agency stressed.

Among the remaining participants of the tender, China’s CNNC, South Korea’s KHNP, and France’s EDF, only China has a wide experience of NPP construction, the report said. "It should be noted that Russia and China are constructing more than 20 reactors both domestically and overseas, unlike France and Korea, each of them constructing two APR1400 technology reactors in Korea, APR1000 technology in the Czech Republic, and EPR1600 technology in the UK," the press service said.

"At present, only Russia and China can independently offer a full range of services from financing to localization of nuclear fuel cycle stages, personnel training, design, construction, and handling and reprocessing of spent nuclear fuel," the agency noted. The republic’s authorities consider China’s CNNC as a potential leader of the consortium for the construction of the second NPP.