ST. PETERSBURG (Sputnik) – Rosatom also expressed cautious optimism about Kazakhstan’s possible participation in the project.
“MBIR construction is going to be completed by 2022,” the documents said.
This year and the next one are going to play a crucial role in creating an international research center on the basis of MBIR.
"Before the end of [this] summer, at least seven memorandums on mutual understanding will be signed with potential partners. These are companies and state organizations from South Korea, France, China, the United States, South Africa … and the Visegrad states [the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland]," the documents said, adding that the agreements with the Czech Republic, South Korea, South Africa and the United States had already been signed.
On Thursday, the nuclear corporation also signed a cooperation agreement with Vnesheconombank (VEB), under which the parties will consider financing the MBIR project.
The construction of MBIR started in the city of Dimitrovgrad in late 2015 on the site of the Research Institute of Atomic Reactors, which already houses eight research reactors. The sodium-cooled reactor's output is set to be 150 megawatts. MBIR will replace the aging BOR-60, which is currently the world's only fast neutron research reactor in operation.
SPIEF, held in Russia's second largest city of St. Petersburg, is a major business and economic event which will continue trough Saturday. The Sputnik news agency is an official media partner of the forum.
