Nuclear power in Bangladesh
Bangladesh first conceived building a nuclear power plant in 1961. The Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission was established in 1973. The country currently operates a TRIGA research reactor at the Atomic Energy Research Establishment in Savar.[1]
More recently, in 2001 Bangladesh adopted a national Nuclear Power Action Plan.[2] On 24 June 2007, Bangladesh's government announced plans to build a nuclear power plant to meet electricity shortages.[3] In May 2010, Bangladesh entered into a civilian nuclear agreement with the Russian Federation. It also has framework agreements for peaceful nuclear energy applications with the US, France and China.
In February 2011, Bangladesh reached an agreement with Russia to build the 2,400 megawatt (MW) Ruppur Nuclear Power Plant with two reactors, each of which will generate 1,200 MW of power. The nuclear power plant will be built at Rooppur, on the banks of the Padma River, in the Ishwardi subdistrict of Pabna, in the northwest of the country.
The inter-governmental agreement (IGA) was officially signed on 2 November 2011.[4] Estimated cost of the contract is US$12.65 billion.[5][6] As per the Revised Annual Development Programme for 2024-2025, a total of BDT 73,746.06 crore had been spent on the project by June 2024.[7]
On 29 May 2013 Bangladesh's Prime Minister declared that a second 2 GW nuclear power plant will be constructed in the southern region of the country. In 2019, site selection was still in progress, with a focus on the coastal region at the Bay of Bengal.[8][9]
Bangladesh received the first shipment of uranium fuel from Russia for its first nuclear power station in October 2023, making it the world's 33rd nuclear energy producer.[10]
Waste disposal
[edit]There are arguments in favour of nuclear energy when compared to the use of coal.[11]
Nuclear waste disposal will be managed by Radioactive Waste Management Company, to be formed according to Bangladesh government's National Policy on Radioactive Waste and Spent Nuclear Fuel Management-2019.[12] Bangladesh plans to store nuclear waste for a given period, after which the waste will be sent to Russia.[12] Spent fuel may be reprocessed in Russia for fast breeder reactors.[13]
Costs
[edit]As of 2018, the estimated cost for waste management, disposal, and decommissioning has not been released.[13]
References
[edit]- ^ "Atomic Energy Research Establishment". Atomic Energy Research Establishment. Archived from the original on 23 October 2017.
- ^ "Emerging Nuclear Energy Countries". World Nuclear Association. April 2009. Retrieved 22 April 2009.
- ^ "Bangladesh To Build Nuclear Power Plant". Energy Daily. 24 June 2007. Retrieved 15 July 2007.
- ^ Chowdhury, Syed Tashfin (5 November 2011). "Bangladesh, Russia sign nuclear plant deal". Asia Times. Archived from the original on 5 November 2011. Retrieved 7 November 2011.
- ^ "Russia to get Rooppur loan payments via Sonali Bank account". The Business Standard. 5 December 2024. Archived from the original on 5 December 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ^ "Annual Report 2019-2020" (PDF). Economic Relations Division (Bangladesh). 2 April 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ^ "Revised Annual Development Programme of 2024-2025". adp.plancomm.gov.bd. Archived from the original on 8 March 2025. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
- ^ http://www.kalerkantho.com/?view=details&type=gold&data=news&pub_no=1258&cat_id=1&menu_id=43&news_type_id=1&index=3> [dead link]
- ^ "Nuclear Power in Bangladesh (October 2022)". Retrieved 17 November 2022.
- ^ "Bangladesh gets first uranium shipment from Russia for nuclear power plant". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
- ^ Goswami, Gour Gobinda; Rahman, Umama; Chowdhury, Mehdi (19 January 2022). "Estimating the economic cost of setting up a nuclear power plant at Rooppur in Bangladesh". Environmental Science and Pollution Research. 29 (23): 35073–35095. doi:10.1007/s11356-021-18129-3. PMC 8767363. PMID 35044606.
- ^ a b "Bangladesh Govt approves Nuclear Waste Management Policy". NuclearAsia. 23 October 2019. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
- ^ a b Rahman, Mowdud; Sarker, Debasish (2 February 2018). "Nuclear power: Surviving on secrecy and misinformation". Daily Star. Bangladesh. Retrieved 3 July 2020.
External links
[edit]
- Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission – Official Website
