Pakistan Blocks Russian Flight Carrying Bangladesh Nuclear Fuel — SkimNews
Get the Geopolitics newsletter
Daily geopolitics — wars, elections, sanctions, the diplomatic moves that move markets. Free.
- Pakistan blocked airspace clearance for a Russian Rosatom cargo flight carrying the first batch of nuclear fuel for Unit-2 of Bangladesh's Rooppur plant, which had been scheduled to arrive on September 24.
- Bangladesh's Science and Technology Minister Faqir Mahbub Anam confirmed the denial but said no reason was provided, while the Pakistan High Commission in Dhaka attributed the decision to "technical" and "procedural issues."
- Rosatom rescheduled the delivery through an alternative route, with remaining fuel batches now set to arrive by December across seven separate cargo flights, and assured Bangladesh the overall project schedule will not be affected.
- Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant has already been delayed two years by Covid and the Russia-Ukraine war; Unit-1 began fuel loading in April, with a 300 MW trial supply to Bangladesh's national grid planned for October and commercial operations targeted for December, which would make Bangladesh the world's 33rd nuclear power-producing country.
- Bangladesh is enduring its worst power crisis in decades — 10-16 hours of daily load-shedding in rural areas — driven by heavy reliance on imported natural gas from Qatar and disruption tied to the Iran conflict and Strait of Hormuz closure, making early Rooppur operation critical for reducing dependence on electricity imports from India.
Why it matters: Bangladesh's first nuclear plant — already delayed two years by Covid and the Russia-Ukraine war — is supposed to deliver 300 MW on a trial basis this month and reach commercial generation in December, easing a crisis that has idled factories for 10-16 hours a day; even a short fuel-delivery delay keeps Dhaka tethered to costly Qatari LNG and Indian electricity imports.
Ask SkimNews
