Uzbekistan and Russia continue to explore the possibility of building a large nuclear power plant, the head of Uzatom said. “It is necessary to explore all possibilities for connecting a large plant to our power system,” he noted.
President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev instructed to develop a project for the construction of a large nuclear power plant at a presentation on 8 August, director of the Atomic Energy Agency Azim Akhmedkhadzhayev said in an interview with Uzbekistan 24 TV channel.
According to him, a document was signed with the Russian state corporation Rosatom under which studies are being carried out.
“It is necessary to explore all possibilities for connecting a large plant to our power system. We will try to build a larger plant and implement a larger system as soon as possible,” he said.
In June, Uzatom and Rosatom signed an agreement on the terms of the project to build a large nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan. The project envisions two VVER-1000 power units (1 GW each) with the option to expand to four units. A joint working group was established to study the main aspects of the project, assess construction costs and then make a decision.
Initially, Uzbekistan and Russia signed an agreement on the construction of a nuclear power plant back in 2018. The document provided for cooperation in the design, construction, commissioning, operation and decommissioning of a nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan, consisting of two power units based on a Russian-design water-cooled water-moderated reactor, each with an installed capacity of up to 1.2 GW.
In May 2024, the sides decided to begin implementing nuclear projects in Uzbekistan with a small nuclear power plant. Amendments were made to the 2018 intergovernmental agreement — the clause on a large NPP with power units of up to 1.2 GW each remained, and a clause was added on a small NPP with six reactors (later revised to two reactors).
Source: Gazeta
