BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

19/10/2007

Belarusian President Invites Japan To Build Nuclear Plant

President Alyaksandr Lukashenka on October 18 invited Japan to submit a proposal for the construction of Belarus's first nuclear power plant, Belapan and Reuters reported, quoting the government news agency Belta. "We consider Japan as a state that could build the safest reactor in the world," Lukashenka told the Japanese Kyodo news agency. "We would very much like to work with Japan, if it proposes a project that is the best in terms of costs, quality, and other criteria," he added. According to Lukashenka, the project, estimated to cost $2.5 billion-2.8 billion, could be inaugurated in 2010 and completed in 2014 or 2015. He added that the Belarusian government is currently considering three groups of foreign companies -- U.S.-Japanese, French-German, and Russian -- as potential contractors for the construction of the plant. JM

Source:

http://www.rferl.org/newsline/2007/10/3-cee/cee-191007.asp