Rooppur:Additional uranium fuel for the first unit of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant arrived at the project site today under stringent security measures involving the Army, Special Response Battalion (SRB), and police.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the convoy transporting the uranium fuel reached Rooppur at approximately 1220 pm after traveling from Dhaka via Dashuria Mor in Ishwardi. The shipment initially landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport in Dhaka at 1144 pm on Friday, where it was received by officials from the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority. The uranium was then transported to Rooppur later that night under Army security.
Three trucks carrying the uranium left the airport after 7 am today, traveling towards Rooppur via the Jamuna Bridge. Security was heightened in Ishwardi and Rooppur in anticipation of the shipment's arrival. Project sources confirmed the arrival of the shipment.
The project plans to receive 48 additional uranium fuel assemblies for the first unit and 163 for the second unit over nine flights during November-December. Previously, uranium fuel brought for the first unit in 2023 was loaded into the reactor in May.
Dr. Zaedul Hasan, the managing director of Nuclear Power Plant Company Bangladesh Limited, stated that testing of the first unit's 16-megapascal high-pressure pressure-operated relief valve had been successfully completed. These tests involved verifying the control valves' functionality, along with the main safety valve's response, opening and closing operations, alarms, and related process parameters.
Ishwardi Circle Additional Superintendent of Police Pranab Kumar confirmed that the uranium shipment reached Rooppur safely under the strict security measures provided. If all preparations proceed as scheduled, the first unit is expected to contribute 300 megawatts, approximately 30 percent of the plant's total electricity generation capacity, to the national grid during November-December.