Indian nuclear industry experts will act as consultants and share experience with Bangladeshi specialists for the Rooppur project, people familiar with the sector said

NEW DELHI: India will soon join the Rooppur Nuclear Power Project in Bangladesh as a sub-contractor, following an India-Russia-Bangladesh trilateral pact for the initiative enabling Indian companies to take part in tenders for construction and installation works.

Indian nuclear industry experts will act as consultants and share experience with Bangladeshi specialists for the Rooppur project, people familiar with the sector told ET. This is the maiden Indo-Russian venture in civil nuclear sector abroad and the initiative can be replicated in Sri Lanka in future, people familiar with the matter said.

The construction of the Rooppur nuclear power plant began in 2017 when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina poured the first concrete of the first unit. Primary phase of the first unit’s construction is complete and commercial launch of the unit, powered by a VVER-1200 nuclear reactor which belongs to the latest 3+ generation, is scheduled for 2023.

The trilateral agreement was signed by India, Russia and Bangladesh in March 2018. The document establishes the basis for the collaboration of the Russian contractor Atomstroyexport with Indian and Bangladeshi specialists in the implementation of the project. Under the agreement, Indian companies will participate in construction and installation work, supply of non-critical materials and equipment for the project, one of the people said.