New Nation Report :
Bloomberg reported that the US is considering placing sanctions on Russia’s state-owned atomic energy corporation, Rosatom Corp., which is a key supplier of fuel and technology to power plants throughout the world.
The White House is engaging with the nuclear power sector about the potential consequences, according to the sources, who asked to remain anonymous to disclose confidential discussions.
The Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant is being built in Bangladesh, and Rosatom is the main contractor, reactor supplier, and nuclear fuel supplier. Ruppur will utilise the Russian flagship technology, Generation III+ VVER-1200, which has a modular and compact architecture.
The United States’ penalty may complicatethe construction and future operation of Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant because of already imposed financial sanctions imposed and potential restrictions on nuclear fuel supply by Russia.
By 2023, the $12.65 billion project, which is sponsored in part by Russia, is scheduled to add 2400MW to the national grid. This project is intended to recover its construction expenses during the first 20 years of operation, with a service life of more than 60 years.
The R-NPP project will have a predicted electricity cost of $47 per megawatt hour at current imported fuel costs. This is far less expensive than HFO or LNG in the country. Bangladesh already has substantial over capacity in the power sector with contracts that forces government to pay capacity charges in US dollars even when private sector plants are not supplying power to the grid.
Because Rosatom and its subsidiaries contribute for around 35 percent of worldwide uranium enrichment and have agreements to transport nuclear material to countries across Europe, the business is a tricky target. Any punishment would also have to exempt the work Rosatom undertakes with Iran under the provisions of the nuclear deal, which Biden is attempting to resurrect.
In Turkey, a major opposition politician has urged its government to reconsider the country’s first nuclear power plant, citing Russia’s state-owned Rosatom’s co-ownership and operation.
