BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, November 26. Russia’s state nuclear corporation, Rosatom, is implementing a large-scale reclamation program for uranium mining sites in Kyrgyzstan and exploring the construction of the country’s first nuclear power plant, Russian President Vladimir Putin told the media following talks with Kyrgyz President Sadyr Zhaparov, Trend reports via the Kremlin.
The potential nuclear facility would use advanced small modular reactor technologies, designed to meet the highest environmental and safety standards. The program is part of broader Russian-Kyrgyz energy cooperation, which also includes modernization of hydroelectric power plants and renewable energy projects.
“These technologies, I would like to emphasize, meet the most stringent safety and environmental protection requirements,” Putin noted.
The issue of uranium legacy sites in Kyrgyzstan is critical; the country hosts several major, hazardous tailings dumps, notably at Mailuu-Suu and Min-Kush, which pose serious environmental risks due to the potential for contamination of transboundary rivers.
In response, Russia, through Rosatom, formally joined the reclamation efforts under the auspices of the Interstate Target Program of EurAsEC (Eurasian Economic Community, later transferred to the Eurasian Economic Union framework) for the remediation of territories affected by uranium mining. Rosatom, through its subsidiary, the State Corporation for Nuclear Energy, is engaged in the intricate technical remediation processes, encompassing the stabilization and encapsulation of hazardous waste repositories to mitigate the risks of erosion and leaching of radionuclides into hydrological systems.
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