Opinions & Interviews

VIENNA, 14 September (BelTA) – Training of personnel for the Belarusian nuclear power plant (BelNPP) is our priority task, along with the construction of the plant, Belarusian Deputy Energy Minister Mikhail Mikhadyuk told journalists, BelTA has learned.

“The construction will soon be completed. Apart from the construction of the BelNPP, the installation of equipment and its fine-tuning, our key priority today is to train specialists. This is one of the main areas of our cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),” Mikhail Mikhadyuk noted.

He stressed that Belarus actively cooperated with the IAEA long before the decision to build the BelNPP was made. Belarus has considerable experience in nuclear power engineering. The Joint Institute for Power and Nuclear Research Sosny is highly regarded by foreign specialists. At the same time, Belarus values the experience it has gained over the years of cooperation with the IAEA.

Mikhail Mikhadyuk emphasized that the BelNPP is being built keeping in mind all the IAEA recommendations. Besides, a number of practices developed in Belarus have been recommended by the agency for similar projects in other countries. “Today all Belarus' government agencies are involved in this process. IAEA experts praise the Belarusian government for the attention it pays to the implementation of this large-scale project,” Mikhail Mikhadyuk said.

“For Belarus, the construction of the nuclear power plant is a very important project that will significantly contribute to the development of its economy. We have already completed the preparatory stage of the project. The delegations that come to inspect the BelNPP construction site say the project is running very well. They come not just to have a look, but to study our experience in organizing the work during the preparatory stage,” Mikhail Mikhadyuk added.