
The Brazilian government will soon announce the launch of low power NPP construction in cooperation with Rosatom, Brazil’s Minister of Mines & Energy Alexandre Silveira told Brazilian newspaper Estadao. This will help to strengthen environmental protection in the Amazon region and phase out thermal power plants still running on fuel oil, he added. He said Russian President Vladimir Putin had instructed Rosatom to begin engaging with the Brazilian government shortly “so we can move toward the development of small nuclear reactors, which will be vital for our energy future”.
Silveira also welcomed collaboration with Russia on completing the unit 3 at the Angra NPP in Rio de Janeiro state. Rosatom is prepared to complete that project and take part in building additional NPPs across the country.
During the visit of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva to Moscow for the 80th anniversary celebrations of the end of World War II, he held talks with President Vladimir Putin during which he emphasised that constructing small nuclear plants with Russia would enhance the country’s energy stability. He also called for expanding cooperation with Moscow in the surveying and extraction of critical minerals.
Brazil’s authorities are also keen to study Russia’s expertise in nuclear waste management, Silveira noted in a later interview with Petronoticias. “The final disposal of waste remains one of the top challenges in the nuclear energy sector worldwide,” he stressed. “It is worth highlighting that today’s technologies in Russia, like in China, are so advanced that even waste is being reprocessed,” he said, emphasising that learning from this experience “will be pivotal” for advancing Brazil’s nuclear energy programme.