Three more Rooppur project buildings to cost Tk 300 crore despite risk of empty flats

The Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant has 2,016 flats in 21 multistory residential buildings constructed for the project. Around 4,500 local and foreign officials currently live there. Once the power plant becomes operational and most Russian nationals return home, the total workforce is expected to fall to around 2,000. The existing residential buildings in the project area would be sufficient to accommodate them. Some flats may even remain vacant.

Despite this, authorities have taken an initiative to construct four new multistory buildings at a cost of nearly Tk 300 crore. The plan also includes expanding an existing building and constructing an additional laboratory building. Relevant officials say the additional expenditure will increase the cost of electricity generation. This has raised questions about the necessity of the proposed construction.

The Public Works Department (PWD) will construct the buildings based on the requirements of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission and the project authorities. The expenditure will come from the project fund. The Department of Architecture is preparing the designs. Construction work is expected to begin after the designs are completed within the next two to three months.

Major irregularities and corruption were previously uncovered in the construction and procurement activities at Green City, the residential area of the Rooppur power plant. Although no major irregularities or corruption have been reported in the main project, Green City has brought controversy to the country’s first nuclear power project.

Against this backdrop, questions have emerged over whether the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission and project officials have vested interests in the renewed initiative to construct potentially unnecessary facilities. Calls have also been made for an investigation into the matter.

Four current and former project officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Agamir Somoy that under the terms of the agreement, Bangladesh was responsible for providing accommodation for Russian nationals. Permanent buildings were constructed instead of temporary accommodation with the intention of allowing Bangladeshis to use them in the future as well. However, the construction work was delayed. The Public Works Department completed most of the construction within a relatively short period.

Meanwhile, toward the final stage of the project, Russian nationals demanded Tk 80 crore from Bangladesh, alleging that the authorities had failed to ensure accommodation for all employees on time. However, questions have been raised about the justification for their demand.

Mohammad Rashed Kabir, executive engineer of the Pabna Public Works Division, told Agamir Somoy that 21 multistory residential buildings had already been handed over at Green City, the residential area for officials of the Rooppur project. Now, under the revised development project, six new buildings will be constructed and one existing building will be expanded vertically. The total cost will be Tk 318 crore.

According to relevant sources, Green City currently has 21 residential buildings. Two of them are 16-story buildings containing 112 flats measuring 1,500 square feet each.

Another eight multistory buildings of the same height have 668 flats measuring 1,250 square feet each. There are also 11 20-story buildings. Eight of these buildings contain 880 flats measuring 1,250 square feet each, while the remaining three have 336 flats measuring 850 square feet each.

If everything goes as planned, the first unit of the power plant may begin generating electricity this month. The second unit is expected to start production toward the end of next year.

As the project work has gradually decreased, many Russian nationals have already returned to their country. Most of them are expected to leave within the next one to one and a half years. However, 250 to 300 Russian nationals will remain for another two to three years to operate the power plant alongside Bangladeshi employees.

The state-owned Nuclear Power Plant Company Bangladesh Limited (NPCBL) will operate the power plant. The company has around 1,750 employees. Including Russian nationals, the total workforce will stand at approximately 2,000.

However, Green City primarily provides accommodation for officials. NPCBL has around 800 to 900 first and second-class officials. This means that after the power plant becomes operational, the existing accommodation at Green City will be sufficient for all NPCBL officials and Russian nationals. At least 1,000 flats will remain vacant. Even if these flats are allocated to employees, there will still be sufficient accommodation for everyone.

According to the Department of Architecture, among the six new buildings to be constructed, one will be a 16-story residential building. Two floors will be used for parking. The remaining 14 floors will have 42 flats, including 28 units measuring 1,820 square feet each and 14 units measuring 2,510 square feet each.

A 12-story dormitory will also be constructed. There is currently a guest accommodation facility with 50 beds at the site.

Meanwhile, an existing 16-story bachelor dormitory, designed to accommodate unmarried individuals or people staying without their families, will be expanded vertically to make it a 20-story building.

A 10-story security barrack will be constructed for security personnel. However, the formation of NPCBL’s own security force for the power plant has not yet been finalized. There are also doubts over whether such a force will eventually be established. This has raised questions about the justification for constructing the building in advance.

In addition, an Environment Monitoring Lab will be constructed to monitor the power plant’s impact on the environment. However, a laboratory is already available at the site for the same purpose. Officials have said that such a laboratory does not require much space and there is no justification for constructing a separate building for it.

Alongside these buildings, a residential building will be constructed for the power plant’s station director and a mosque will also be built.

Relevant officials believe these two facilities are necessary, while the other buildings are unnecessary. Of the total Tk 318 crore allocated for the construction, nearly Tk 300 crore will be spent on these potentially unnecessary buildings.

An attempt was made last Thursday to meet M Moinul Islam, chairman (in-charge) of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Commission, at the commission’s office in Agargaon, Dhaka, to seek his comments on the matter. However, permission was not granted.

Mohammad Shamsuddoha, personal secretary to the chairman, told Agamir Somoy, “Sir’s instructions are that no journalist can meet him. He will not speak to anyone.”

The chairman was later contacted directly by phone. However, he did not respond despite several attempts.

Mohammad Kabir Hossain, project director of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant Construction Project, told Agamir Somoy that the buildings were being constructed because the authorities considered them necessary. No facility would remain unused.

However, several project officials said that completing these buildings 10 to 12 years ago, during the early stages of the project, would have been somewhat reasonable. But since that did not happen, there is no justification for constructing additional buildings now. Most Russian nationals will leave within a short period.

Several NPCBL officials told Agamir Somoy that under the existing rules, rent is deducted from their salaries if they live at Green City. However, renting accommodation outside the residential complex costs less. As a result, many employees are less interested in living at Green City. The recent increase in government employees’ salaries is expected to further reduce their interest.

Professor Dr M Shamsul Alam, energy adviser to the Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB), told Agamir Somoy that most government residential buildings outside Dhaka remain vacant because of high rents. Constructing more buildings than required in such circumstances would be a major waste of public money. He said unnecessary expenditure of this kind should be stopped.

A recent special audit by the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General of Bangladesh (CAG) found that nearly eight times the required amount had been spent on installing an electrical substation at Green City.

The audit also uncovered evidence of unusually high expenditure on generators, lifts, air conditioners, solar power systems, CCTV cameras, fire hydrants, internet connections and centrifugal pumps.

The CAG audit team identified irregularities in several other areas as well. These included purchasing pillows and dressing tables at inflated prices, paying contractors despite their failure to supply the specified products, showing 70 percent additional measurements for steel bar lapping without following design instructions and making payments accordingly, failing to deduct withholding VAT from contractors’ bills, and awarding contracts and making additional payments for supplied products without explaining abnormally low quoted prices.

According to the audit report, objections were raised over 10 issues, resulting in a total estimated loss of Tk 294 crore to the government.