Second uranium consignment reaches Rooppur under tight security, trial power hoped for in December

The second consignment of nuclear fuel for the second unit of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant has reached the plant under tight security. The convoy carrying the uranium entered the plant at Ishwardi in Pabna at 10:03am on Wednesday.

Earlier, at 4:56am, the uranium-carrying convoy had set off for Rooppur from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka under the security of the Bangladesh Army.

Alongside the army, members of the police, the SRB and various intelligence agencies were on security duty for the convoy. Members of the law enforcement agencies were deployed at important points along the road from Dhaka to Ishwardi, and strict security measures were in place along the entire route.

The aircraft carrying the fuel for the second consignment of the plant's second unit had arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Tuesday night. Officials of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority then received the uranium consignment.

Asadur Rahman, officer-in-charge of Ishwardi Police Station, confirmed the arrival, saying the second uranium consignment reached the project at around 10am amid security.

Project sources said the fuel is being brought into the country in a total of nine consignments — seven for the second unit of the Rooppur plant and two for refuelling work on the first unit.

According to the sources, a target has been set to deliver all the consignments successfully by December, and the fuel shipments are proceeding to that schedule.

If all preparations are completed on time, officials and engineers concerned hope that 200 to 300 megawatts of electricity could be added to the national grid on a trial basis from the country's first nuclear power plant within December this year.

The Rooppur project is one of the largest projects in the country's power sector. Preparations around its two units have been under way for a long time, and the arrival of fuel is one of the most important steps in those preparations.

With the second unit's second consignment delivered safely, the continuity of the project's fuel supply has moved another step forward. Project officials said the remaining consignments will also be brought in under equally tight security.