Nuclear Milestone: Rooppur Unit-1 Completes Core Fuel Loading

Fresh nuclear fuel has been successfully loaded into the reactor core of the first unit of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project in Pabna. This is being considered a major milestone on the path toward commissioning and commercial electricity generation of the unit.

The development was confirmed on Tuesday evening, 12 May, in a press release issued by Rosatom, Russia’s state nuclear energy agency.

According to the statement, a total of 163 fuel assemblies have been installed in the reactor core in phases after the fuel loading process began on 28 April. This is regarded as one of the most critical stages prior to the commencement of power generation.

Project Director of the Rooppur project and Vice President of Atomstroyexport, Alexey Deyri, said that the entire process strictly adhered to the initial core loading program, operational regulations, and international nuclear safety standards.

He noted that the next phase will involve the installation of the upper part of the reactor and the integration of the necessary in-core instrumentation systems. This will be followed by a series of tests to ensure the safe and reliable operation of all technical systems.

According to him, the reactor will soon be brought to the minimum controllable power level, after which output capacity will be gradually increased. This process will pave the way for trial commercial operation of the first unit.

The project, being constructed with Russian technical and financial assistance, includes the installation of two VVER-1200 reactors with a total capacity of 2,400 megawatts. These Generation III+ reactors are capable of meeting international safety standards, officials said.

DBTech/SM/MUM/OR