Russia’s state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom has begun delivering nuclear fuel for the initial loading of Unit 2 at Bangladesh’s Rooppur nuclear power station, a statement said.
Rosatom said that it had completed a first shipment of fuel assemblies manufactured by its Novosibirsk Chemical Concentrates Plant in Russia. The fuel was transported to Bangladesh on a dedicated cargo flight.
The company said the fuel containers had been transferred to a storage facility at Rooppur, where the assemblies undergo visual and technical inspections before they can be loaded into the reactor.
Russia is building two VVER-1200 pressurised water reactor (PWR) units at the Rooppur site, about 150 km from the capital Dhaka, under a general contract signed in 2015. Atomstroyexport, a Rosatom subsidiary, is the general contractor for the project.
First concrete for Rooppur-1 was poured in November 2017 and for Rooppur-2 in July 2018.
Rosatom said it also delivered the first batch of replacement fuel for Rooppur-1, which will be used during the reactor’s first scheduled refuelling after its initial operating cycle.
Rooppur-1 achieved first criticality, or its first self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction, on 11 October 2026.
Rosatom said the reactor subsequently reached its minimum controlled power level.
Fuel for the initial loading of Rooppur-1 was delivered in 2023 and loaded into the reactor in April and May 2026.
