Government Restructures Committees for Rooppur Nuclear Power Project

The Bangladeshi government has restructured eight sub-group committees to facilitate the implementation of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (RNPP) project. According to a gazette notification from the Cabinet Division, these committees will support the working groups in identifying and executing necessary tasks. The Ministry of Science and Technology will provide secretarial assistance through its relevant branches.

Each sub-group consists of 8 to 14 members, with newly defined scopes of work. The restructured committees are:

1. International Obligations, Legal and Regulatory Aspects, and Nuclear Safety and Security
2. Ownership and Institutional Framework
3. Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Radioactive Waste Management, and Decommissioning
4. Development and Human Resources
5. National Participation
6. Financing and Procurement
7. Grid System Development
8. Heavy Equipment Transportation Planning

Meanwhile, significant progress has been achieved at the RNPP. The assembly of the reactor in the first unit has been successfully completed, including the installation of internal components, fuel assembly simulators, protective piping, upper units, and sensors for smart automated monitoring systems. The next phase involves hydraulic tests to verify the operational readiness of various reactor plant components.

The RNPP, Bangladesh's first nuclear power plant, is being constructed with technical and financial assistance from Russia. The project will feature two power units with a combined generation capacity of 2,400 megawatts. Each unit will house a Generation III+ Russian VVER-1200 reactor, which meets all international safety standards. Russia's Rosatom is serving as the general designer and contractor for the project.