Baku, Azerbaijan, July 20
By Fakhri Vakilov –Trend:
In June 2019, the second stage of engineering surveys on the construction of the first nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan was launched, a source from Rosatom told Trend in an interview.
"At the moment, a very important stage is undergoing, which includes engineering surveys at a priority site near Lake Tuzkan of Aydar-Arnasay lakes system in the Jizzakh region. The site was determined following the results of the first stage of work," the spokesperson said.
Engineering and survey work at the site of the future NPP will last 18 months. "Within this stage, all the necessary initial data for the development of project documentation will be obtained," the source stated.
In particular, it concerns the data on the seismicity of the power plant site, the characteristics of the soil, the annual temperature cycle, precipitation and other characteristics. According to the source, all these data together will form the basis for the development of project documentation and optimal requirements for equipment to be installed at NPP.
A source from Rosatom stressed that, as practice in other countries shows, investments in the construction of nuclear power plants have a positive effect on the country's GDP, not only due to the direct impact of the project like revenues of local suppliers, but also due to the growth in orders from related industries: suppliers of materials, construction equipment and other services.
"If we speak in figures, then $1 invested in NPPs under the Rosatom project may bring $1.9 to local suppliers and more than $4 for a country's GDP," the source added.
At the same time, investments in nuclear energy will allow the country not only to solve the issues of stable energy supply, but also to expand non-energy areas including nuclear medicine, water purification and other nuclear innovations that work to improve the quality of life of the population and social development, the spokesperson noted.
Last year, On September 7, 2018 the prime ministers of Russia and Uzbekistan signed an intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the construction of a nuclear power plant in Uzbekistan under the Russian project.
The project involves the construction of two power units with VVER-1200 type reactors.
Earlier, Trend reported that Rosatom began the second stage of construction of NPP in Uzbekistan.
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