Rooppur power plant records country’s first nuclear reaction

The country’s first incidence of nuclear reaction took place at the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant in Pabna on Sunday afternoon, confirmed Science and Technology Secretary Anwar Hossain.

The nuclear chain reaction or the “first criticality stage” was achieved at 3:34pm at the first unit of the power plant, Anwar Hossain said, adding all the parameters were within acceptable limits.

To be sure, the nuclear chain reaction does not mean nuclear power production, which requires two further tests, and a final set of regulatory approvals.

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Rather, the nuclear chain reaction simply means that the reactor has reached a state where nuclear fission produces enough neutrons to sustain further fission reactions without relying on an external neutron source.

Earlier, on Thursday, the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (BAERA) gave the approval for the first nuclear reaction at the plant.

The stage was delayed due to technical faults at safety valves, which were later resolved with support from Russian technicians.