The first low-power nuclear power plant in the region will be built in Uzbekistan based on Russian technology. As previously reported , these documents were signed on May 27 during the state visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to Uzbekistan.

The NPP Construction Directorate of the Atomic Energy Agency under the Cabinet of Ministers and the "Atomstroyexport" company (engineering department of "Rosatom") signed an agreement on the construction of a low-power nuclear power plant (KQAS) in Uzbekistan. In addition, a protocol on amendments to the intergovernmental agreement on cooperation on the construction of a nuclear power plant in the territory of Uzbekistan dated September 7, 2018 was signed.

According to the press release of the Atomic Energy Agency and Rosatom, QQAS will have a capacity of 330 MW (six reactors with a capacity of 55 MW each) and will be built in Jizzakh region. "Rosatom" will be the main contractor in the construction of the station, and Uzbek companies will also participate.

Construction work on the site will begin in the summer. "The selected area has already been checked, its suitability and safety have been confirmed, which will significantly reduce the project implementation time," the press release said.

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"According to forecasts, the demand for energy resources in Uzbekistan will almost double by 2050, and it is clear that for the stable operation of the energy system and the development of the economy, our country must provide itself with renewable energy sources as well as basic energy sources," said Atomic Energy. director of the agency Azim Ahmedkhadjaev.

"Now we see a growing interest in the creation of new nuclear power both in terms of the construction of high-power nuclear power plants and projects of small modular reactors. "We believe that expanding cooperation with Rosatom will allow us to strengthen our energy complex with advanced nuclear energy technologies," he added.

This is the first export contract for the construction of KQAS for Rosatom. "And this is not just a preliminary agreement, we will start construction this summer," said Aleksey Likhachyov, CEO of Rosatom State Corporation.

As we wrote earlier, Shavkat Mirziyoev, commenting on the agreement, said: "Almost all the leading countries in the world ensure their energy security and sustainable development at the expense of nuclear energy. If we think about the prospects of Uzbekistan entering a new stage of development, this project is vital for our country, which has a large amount of uranium reserves and exports it to third countries."