Road to Rooppur N-Power Plant

Bangladesh has a long history of nuclear power generation. It started in 1961.

The then-Pakistan government took the plan of first nuclear power project in the then East Pakistan.

1962-1968 - Rooppur, on the bank of the river Padma, was selected as the site for the nuclear power plant.

The government carried out a number of studies and acquired 260 acres of land for the construction of a 200MW nuclear power plant and 32 acres for the residential area.

Meanwhile, land development, site office for construction, rest house, electric substation and a few residential units were partially completed.

However, all the activities related to the Rooppur plant slowed down after 1965.

The then Pakistan government shifted the project to Karachi, West Pakistan.

A year later, the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission started construction of the nuclear power unit with 137MW capacity with Canadian pressurised heavy water or popularly known as KANDU reactor, and completed it in 1971. A good number of Bangali engineers and scientific officers, who were recruited for the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant, were engaged in the construction of the Karachi Nuclear Power Plant.

1969-1970 - The Pakistan government scrapped the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant project.

1972-1975 - The first Bangladesh government revived the nuclear power project.

27 February 1973 - The founding government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh created Bangladesh AnobikShakti Kamishon (Literall: Bangladesh Molecular Energy Commission) with an objective to promote the use of atomic energy for peaceful purposes.

In 1988, it was renamed as Bangladesh Paramanu Shakti Kamishon or Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC). In 2006, the headquarters of BAEC was shifted to the Poromanu Bhaban building at Agargaon, Shere Bangla Nagar, Dhaka from the Dhaka University premises.

1977-1986 - Construction of a nuclear power plant at the Rooppur site was found feasible following a feasibility study carried out by the French company Sofratom.

The government could not advance with the project due to different constraints even after its Executive Committee of the National Economic Council approved a project proposal for the construction of a 125MW nuclear power plant.

1981 - the Institute of Nuclear Science and Technology (INST) started functioning as an arm of BAEC to promote research and development works in different fields of nuclear science and technology, especially towards the development of infrastructure for future nuclear power projects in the country.

September 14, 1986 - The BAEC commissioned a TRIGA Mark-ll research reactor with 3MW thermal power generation capacity at Savar, Dhaka.

1987-1988 - A German and a Swedish company carried out another feasibility study at Rooppur. The Study recommended constructing a 300MW-500MW nuclear power plant.

1997-2000 - BAEC took a project to set up a 600MW nuclear power plant at Rooppur. A few preparatory activities including human resource development were initiated. The then BAEC Chairman Dr MA Wazed Miah played the key role.

The government approved Bangladesh Nuclear Power Action Plan 2000.

2005 - The government signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with China.

2007 - BAEC proposed to construct a two-unit nuclear power plant with 500MW capacity each at Rooppur by 2015.

The proposal quoted an estimated cost of US$0.9 billion to $1.2 billion for a 600MW nuclear power plant and $ 1.5 billion to $2.0 billion for a 1,000MW plant. The then-caretaker government approved the proposal.

Former BAEC chairman and an adviser to the caretaker government, CS Karim, played the key role in obtaining the government's nod to advance with the nuclear program.

2008    - Awami League in its election manifesto pledged to go ahead with the nuclear power plant.

In April 2008, the then government reiterated its willingness to work with China to build the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant. China offered funding for the project.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) approved a Technical Assistance project for the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant to be initiated between 2009 and 2011.

2009    - The government initiated the nation's nuclear programme through a development project to complete essential works for building a nuclear power plant at Rooppur.

In April, the government approved the Russian proposal to build a two-unit nuclear power plant with 2,000 MW combined capacity at a cost of about $2 billion.

The proposal included Russia-built AES-92 or VVER-1,000 water pressurized reactors. 2010 - Both the governments of Bangladesh and Russia agreed to build a two-unit nuclear power plant with VVER-1,000 reactors.

Major follow up events: May 21, 2010 - The government of Bangladesh signed a cooperation agreement with the government of Russian Federation in the field of peaceful use of nuclear energy.

The intergovernmental agreement provides a legal basis for nuclear cooperation in areas such as sitting, design, construction and operation of power and research nuclear reactors, water desalination plants, and elementary particle accelerators.

The agreement also provides bindings for supply of fuel and management of nuclear wastes as such Russia will manage wastes and decommissioning.

November 10, 2010 - Parliament took the decision to construct a nuclear power plant at Rooppur.

November 2, 2011 - Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) on cooperation in construction of a nuclear power plant in Bangladesh.
June 19, 2012 - The government enacted the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Act-2012 and created an authority to regulate the country's nuclear industry.

The parliament was told that the government planned to set up further nuclear power plants with a combined generation capacity of 5,000 MW by 2030, and a second plant would be built in the coastal belt following successful commissioning of the Rooppur plant.

15 January 2013 - Authorities of Bangladesh and Russia signed the first Intergovernmental Credit Agreement (IGCA) worth $500 million for the preparatory works on construction of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant at an estimated cost of $555 million.

The Bangladesh government invested $55 million under its Annual Development Program. Under the provision of the IGA and IGCA, four contracts for the preparatory period were signed between Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) and Russian Contractor, ASE Group of Companies.

October 2, 2013 - Prime minister Sheikh Hasina laid the first stone in the foundation of the Rooppur NPP.

2014 - Rosatom State Atomic Energy Corporation of Russia said that they will supply and install two units of VVER-1200 light water reactors and its Novovoronezh-2 NPP in Russia would be the reference plant.

September 8, 2015 - Parliament passed the Nuclear Power Plant Act-2015 that established the Nuclear Power Company of Bangladesh for operation and maintenance of the country's nuclear power plants including its first one, Rooppur NPP.

Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission is the owning organization while the Nuclear Power Piant Company Bangladesh Limited will be the operating organization on behalf of the BAEC. A board was proposed consisting of 7-12 directors to run the company.

The science and technology ministry secretary has been made the chairman of the board. The project director, Md Shawkat Akbar, was made the first managing director of the company.

November 30, 2017 - Main construction phase of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant began with the first concrete pouring into the reactor building foundation.