Rosatom and Bangladesh authorities are working together to train personnel for the country’s nuclear industry. Bengali specialists go through several stages of theoretical and practical training and then pass exams to get licensed. Experts of the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (BAERA) also do regular internships. Here is our story about how the training of Bengali nuclear professionals is organized.
In late June, Rooppur Unit 1 engineers completed a pre-licensing training program at the nuclear plant’s training center in Bangladesh. The training was organized by the Rosatom Technical Academy (RTA).
Next, the engineers will have to obtain licenses from the Bangladesh Atomic Energy Regulatory Authority (BAERA).
The training program for the locals is divided into several stages. Bengali students first have theory classes at the RTA facilities in Russia and then practice their skills on simulators. After that, they are interned at the Novovoronezh Nuclear Power Plant, which has been chosen as a reference station for the Rooppur personnel to be trained there.
“On the annual average, our International Personnel Training Center graduates around 500 foreign trainees from Rooppur and also from the Akkuyu NPP, which is currently under construction in Turkey. Egypt’s El Dabaa NPP will soon send its employees to us for training,” said Alexander Kachaev, Head of the International Personnel Training Center at Novovoronezh.
Bengali engineers are trained in groups of two or three, with classes held by working professionals and instructors of the Novovoronezh training department. Professional interpreters help them overcome the language barrier.
“We passed a careful selection process to be employed at Rooppur. My family is very happy for me that I am involved in a historic event, construction of our country’s first nuclear power plant, and will work there,” says Mohammad Sazzadul Islam from the Rooppur NPP.
Having completed their training program in Russia, the Rooppur employees return home to spend six months practicing at the on-site training center. After that, they start a pre-license training course. Their knowledge and skills are evaluated on over 10 criteria at every stage of training. Experts make preliminary recommendations for job assignments. In addition, the employees are tested at the RTA Safety Culture and Human Factor Reliability Competence Center to assess their professionally important personal qualities and psychophysical properties with the dedicated psychological diagnostic methods.
“Depending on their position, every employee is trained for one to three years to be able to safely and professionally operate a nuclear power plant. Today, 48 Bengali nuclear professionals have completed their training and qualified for examination to obtain a work permit for the nuclear industry and be subsequently admitted to work at Unit 1 of the Rooppur NPP,” said RTA Project Director Sergey Lyulin.
BAERA officials also do internships at Russian nuclear power plants, along with Rooppur employees. The last training session for the BAERA was held in mid-June. Russian experts shared their experience in inspecting and supervising nuclear stations at different stages of their life cycle.
The BAERA delegation visited the control room of innovative Unit 6 at Novovoronezh. They were also told about the history of the nuclear power plant, environmental protection activities, and the current environmental conditions in the host area of the station.
“Nuclear energy is a new sector for our country, so it is essential for us to adopt the knowledge and experience from our Russian colleagues. Our group of BAERA inspectors is the fourth in succession; three other groups have completed the internship ahead of us. It is very important to communicate with Russian colleagues and see everything with our own eyes. We were given excellent knowledge at Novovoronezh, and we will apply it in our work,” said Rahman SK Anisur from the BAERA.
As part of their training visit to Russia, BAERA representatives also visited Elemash (part of Rosatom’s nuclear fuel division), AtomStroyExport (Rosatom’s engineering division), Federal Scientific and Technical Center for Nuclear and Radiation Safety, and Russia’s nuclear regulator Rostechnadzor.
