Nuclear fuel loading begins in Rooppur: Bangladesh enters new era of power generation

A new milestone has been set in Bangladesh's power and energy sector with the start of nuclear fuel loading at the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant. The work of adding uranium fuel to the first unit of this project located in Ishwardi, Pabna, began on Tuesday, marking the country's formal entry into the era of power generation through nuclear energy.

Project officials said that a total of 163 fuel assemblies are being installed in the reactor core step by step with Russian technical assistance and supervision of local engineers. This stage has been reached after almost a decade of preparation, infrastructure development and technical expertise, which will play an important role in strengthening the country's energy security.

According to the Ministry of Science and Technology, it will take about 45 days to complete the fuel loading in the first unit. If everything goes according to plan, electricity production can initially start in the middle of this year and be connected to the national grid, and later it will be possible to supply about 1200 MW of electricity at full capacity.

This large project, built on the banks of the Padma River, has two modern reactors, which, when fully operational, will have a total capacity of 2,400 megawatts of electricity. This is expected to meet a large part of the country's electricity needs. According to experts, this initiative will open up new possibilities for Bangladesh not only in terms of electricity generation, but also in terms of technological capacity and economic development.