Uzbekistan nuclear power plant project management company under Uzatom Agency and Russian Atomstroyexport (engineering wing of Rosatom) signed a MoM on the commencement of work at the construction site of the future small-scale nuclear power plant (SSNPP) in Uzbekistan, the press service of Uzatom said.
The MoM was signed in the presence of the Director of Uzatom, Azim Akhmedkhadjaev and Deputy Director General/Director for International Activities of Rosatom, Nikolay Spasskiy.
“Today's signing marks the transition to active work on the implementation of the first SSNPP in Uzbekistan and will allow us to begin direct work at the construction site in the near future,” emphasized the chief of the management company at Uzatom, Otabek Amanov.
“The MoM signed today confirms the performance of the priority conditions in terms of regulatory and financial obligations of the parties. "Rosatom's engineering wing is beginning to actively work on the documentation to obtain a license for the placement of the SNPP and survey work at the construction site," said Pavel Bezrukov, director of nuclear power plants projects in Central Asia at Atomstroyexport.
Reportedly, preliminary work on the SNPP project began in the summer. In June, the first project headquarters was held at the site of the future nuclear power plant, where priority tasks were identified, the implementation of which will allow work to begin within the scheduled time frame. At the end of August, work began on creating a shift camp for the builders of the future nuclear power plant.
"This is the first step in the traditional comprehensive development of the area where the nuclear power plant is present - cultural, educational projects, medical organizations will appear in the region, and the settlement will attract people to live, industrial companies and commercial organizations - to work," Uzatom added.
The SNPP project deal was signed on May 27 between the management company and Atomstroyexport during the visit of Russian president Vladimir Putin to Tashkent. It provides for the construction of a SNPP in the Jizzakh province of Uzbekistan on Lake Tuzkan according to a Russian design with a total capacity of 330 MW (6 SMRs of 55 MW each).
The general contractor is Atomstroyexport, and local companies will be involved in the construction.
The SNPP project is based on the RITM-200N pressurized water reactor, "the result of adapting innovative marine technology for land-based placement," the report says. It emphasized that the project is characterized by compactness and reduced construction rates compared to high-power nuclear power plants.
