25 Mar (NucNet): Russian State Nuclear Corporation Rosatom and the Jordan Atomic Energy Commission signed yesterday an intergovernmental agreement for the construction of a nuclear power station in Jordan, Rosatom has said.
The agreement confirms the intentions of Jordan to build a nuclear power station using Russian design, Rosatom said.
Jordanian state news agency Petra said, "the deal stresses the two countries' commitment to supporting the project and includes details on the plant's nuclear fuel and nuclear waste treatment. Under the agreement, Jordan will have the option to return spent nuclear fuel to Russia."
Rosatom said the agreement is the first of two main agreements to be signed. Jordan requires a system of distributed contracting, which includes the signing of an intergovernmental agreement and a separate Project Development Agreement (PDA).
Rusatom Overseas, Rosatom’s subsidiary in charge of exporting technology, expects to be directly engaged in the project preparation under the PDA, Rosatom said.
In September 2014, Rosatom signed a pre-investment contract for the construction of two VVER-1000 units with an electrical power output of 1,000 megawatts each in Jordan.
The contract included the investigations into the development of a water supply system for the cooling of the reactors, analysis of the energy market, site evaluation and the preparation of an environmental impact assessment.
The agreement on the construction of the first reactor unit will be signed in 2016 and the first reactor is scheduled to begin operation in 2022, Rosatom said.
Rosatom also said it is considering the formation of a joint-venture for the construction and ownership of the nuclear station which will be 51 percent owned by Jordan and 49 percent by Russia. The total investment in the project is US$10 billion.
In November 2013, Rosatom won a tender for the construction of a nuclear power station in Jordan.
