Indian infrastructure and EPC companies are likely to participate in upcoming tenders for non-critical works at the $12.6-billion Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in Bangladesh, as construction of the second 1200 MW unit of the plant kicked-off in Bangladesh today.

The ceremony, the first pour of concrete in Unit-2 of the Rooppur plant, was inaugurated by Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The project is being executed by the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) and Russia’s state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom.

According to a source close to Rosatom, infrastructure majors Larsen and Toubro (L&T), Tata Group and Shapoorji Pallonji Group, the Anil-Ambani-led Reliance Infrastructure are among companies exploring opportunities related to the Rooppur project. Indian players, however, are likely to face fierce competition from Chinese, Japanese and Korean companies that are partnering with local players.

Over 70 tenders for various non-critical works at Rooppur plant have been floated by ASE Group so far. The potential opportunity, according to sources, could be in the range of $500 million to $1.2 billion spread across multiple contracts.

“Rooppur NPP is probably the first project of such complexity for Bangladesh, and it is natural for any country executing such a critical project for the first time to attract expertise from outside. While Russian companies will dominate at the equipment and critical service supply level, Indian EPC players could excecute civic construction contracts as they have the required expertise,” the person cited above said.

The trilateral agreement for cooperation on the project signed by India, Russia and Bangladesh in March 2018 has opened up an opportunity for Indian companies to participate in construction and installation works as well as supply of non-critical materials and equipment for the project, Alexander Khazin, Senior Vice-President for International Projects of ASE Group (formerly known as Atomstroyexport), an engineering division of Rosatom and the General Contractor for Rooppur NPP, said.

Earlier this year, Hindustan Construction Company Ltd (HCC) bagged a $110-million contract for civil works at Rooppur NPP in a joint venture with Bangladesh-based MAX Group, where the Indian company holds 40 per cent share. “HCC has become the first Indian company to participate in the international civil nuclear market,” Arjun Dhawan, Director and Group CEO, said then.

RInfra has bagged a Rs 1,081-crore EPC contract for units 3 and 4 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KNPP) developed by Rosatom in Tamil Nadu last year.

Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (BAERA) granted a licence to the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission (BAEC) for construction of the second unit of Rooppur NPP on July 8. The construction of the first unit started in November 2017. The selected design for the plant is based on Generation III VVER-1200 reactors of Russian design, having its first prototype at Russia’s Novovoronezh NPP-2.

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