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Nuclear Safety Brings America Into Russia's Uzbek Energy Project
By Eurasianet
- Russia remains central to Uzbekistan’s first nuclear power plant, which is planned to include two large reactors and two small modular reactors.
- Uzbekistan has signed a new nuclear-safety agreement with the United States, covering licensing, inspections, regulations, emergency preparedness, and specialist training.
- Tashkent is bringing more foreign expertise into the project, although official statements stop short of saying Russia or Rosatom is being replaced.
Uzbekistan still wants Russia to build its first nuclear plant, but when it comes to safety, Tashkent is turning to the United States.
Meeting on the sidelines of the recent general conference session of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna, US and Uzbek officials signed a memorandum of understanding covering monitoring, safe operations and disaster response. The memo additionally contains provisions to enable US technical assistance to improve regulatory guidelines and training programs.
“The memorandum will expand the exchange of information and experience between the regulatory authorities of the two countries and contribute to ensuring safety in the peaceful use of nuclear energy,” according to a statement issued by Uzbekistan’s Committee on Industrial, Radiation and Nuclear Safety.
Uzbek nuclear officials also held talks with their Russian counterparts amid the IAEA gathering. Curiously, no memos or agreements resulted from the meeting. An Uzbek statement noted that the ongoing bilateral dialogue enables “the advancement of statutory inspection methodologies, and the rigorous enforcement of safety requirements across all stages of NPP design, construction, and operation.”
The US-Uzbek memo offers fresh evidence that Uzbekistan is losing faith in the Russian state-controlled entity Rosatom to fulfill its obligations to build the Central Asian state’s first nuclear cluster, comprising two large-scale reactors and two small modular types. Construction has faced delays amid speculation about Rosatom’s financial health.
In early September, Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev announced the formation of an international consortium to assume oversight of construction “to improve project management [and] strengthen technical oversight.”
By Eurasianet
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