Islamabad, Sep 30: Even as Pakistan and Bangladesh strive to strengthen their bilateral diplomatic ties, Pakistan has denied airspace access to a Russian aircraft transporting nuclear fuel (uranium) for Bangladesh’s Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant. Consequently, the delivery of this crucial uranium supply to Bangladesh has been delayed.
The early operationalization of this nuclear plant was critical for Bangladesh, a nation currently grappling with its worst energy and power crisis in decades. The Bangladeshi government had planned to commence commercial power generation at the Rooppur plant as soon as possible to alleviate the country’s electricity shortage. However, the closure of Pakistani airspace has delayed the arrival of the uranium fuel, a development likely to have a serious impact on the timeline for the nuclear plant’s commissioning. What is Pakistan’s clarification
After facing strong objections for denying a Russian aircraft permission to use its airspace, Pakistan issued a clarification stating that the issue was merely “technical.” The Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka released a statement today, noting that requests regarding the movement of diplomatic flights and airspace usage permissions are reviewed in accordance with established civil aviation regulations.
“According to reports, the matter pertains to technical and procedural arrangements regarding the flight path and airspace clearance. Flight schedules may sometimes change due to the need for coordination among the relevant aviation authorities,” the High Commission maintained. It further stated that Pakistan attaches high priority to its relationship with Bangladesh.
Delayed Uranium Shipment:
The uranium fuel required for the second unit of Bangladesh’s ‘Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant’ was scheduled to arrive in Dhaka on September 24. However, the planned shipment was cancelled because permission to use Pakistani airspace was not granted. The Russian agency ‘Rosatom’ has now proposed a new schedule for the uranium to reach Bangladesh in the first week of October. ‘Rooppur’, located on the banks of the Padma River in the Ishwardi Upazila of Bangladesh’s Pabna district, is the country’s first nuclear power project. Being constructed with technical assistance from Russia’s ‘Rosatom’, the project features two ‘VVER-1200’ reactors—each with a capacity of 1,200 MW—and will generate a total of 2,400 MW of electricity.