Rosatom To Begin Construction Of Reactor Complex In Bolivia On July 26 - Source

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd July, 2021) Bolivia is set to begin construction of a reactor complex at the Center for Nuclear Research and Technology, a joint project with Russia's nuclear state corporation Rosatom, on July 26, an informed source told Sputnik on Friday.

"On Monday, July 26, a solemn groundbreaking ceremony is planned to mark the start of the construction of the reactor complex, which will house the first nuclear reactor in Bolivia, and which will become a key element of the Center for Nuclear Research and Technology," the source said.

The site is expected to be attended by Bolivian leadership and Rosatom first deputy director general Kirill Komarov, according to the source.

A subsidiary of the Russian nuclear energy corporation and the Bolivian Nuclear Energy Agency signed a contract in 2017 to build nuclear research and technology center in Bolivia's El Alto. In 2019, the construction of the facility was put on hold due to the change of power in the Latin American country and, later, over the COVID-19 pandemic.

It is set to become the world's most alpine research center. With a cyclotron accelerator and multipurpose irradiation center, the compound will accommodate research for agriculture and medicine.

The facility will operate a 200kW pressurized water reactor. The project is estimated at over $300 million and has a projected functional capacity of 50 years, after which the reactor can be modernized to extend its exploitation period.