On May 27, on the sidelines of the state visit of the Russian President Vladimir Putin to Uzbekistan, a minutes of meeting was signed on amending the intergovernmental agreement on cooperation iwithin the nuclear power plant project in Jizzakh.
Also, a contract was entered into between NPP Construction Management Company, a part of Uzatom, and Atomstroyexport engineering company, a Rosatom subsidiary on the construction of a small modular nuclear power plant (SMR) in Uzbekistan.
According to Uzatom, in line with the signed agreements, a 330 MW SMRs (consisting of 6 reactors of 55 MW each) will be built in Jizzakh province based on the Russian project.
Rosatom will be the main contractor in the construction of the station, local companies will also be involved in the construction.
Uzatom ‘s chief Azim Ahmadkhojaev said that the demand for power in Uzbekistan is expected to double by 2050.
"In order for the energy system to work stably and the economy to grow, our country should provide itself with basic power sources in addition to renewable energy sources. All over the world, we are seeing a growing interest in the creation of new nuclear power - both high-capacity nuclear power plants and small modular reactor projects. "We believe that expanding cooperation with Rosatom will allow us to enhance our power complex with advanced technologies in the field of atomic energy," Ahmadkhojaev said.
According to the director of Rosatom, Alexei Likhachev, the corporation under his leadership was the first company in the world to sign an export contract for the construction of a SMR project.
"And this is not just a provisional contract, we will immediately start construction this summer," said Likhachev.
According to the official announcement, the site selected for the NPP has been inspected, the suitability and safety of the site has been confirmed, which will significantly reduce the project implementation time.
"Construction work on the selected site will begin in the summer of this year," says the information service of Uzatom.
Reportedly, the Russian latest development - the RITM-200N water nuclear reactor will be the basis for the project. This reactor was developed as a result of adapting technology designed for use on ships to use on land.
