Following negotiations at the Saint-Petersburg International Economic Forum on 16 June between Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom and the Ministry of Hydrocarbons and Energy of Bolivia, three memoranda were signed relating to the construction of a Nuclear Research and Technology Centre in El Alto. An intergovernmental agreement on the cooperation in construction of the centre was signed in March. Earlier reports said the Bolivian government plans to finance the project at $300m. The construction is scheduled for completion before the end of 2019.
The memoranda concerned training of specialists, communication and achievement of public acceptance of nuclear technology, the Bolivian ministry’s statement said. They are aimed at "improving efficiency of implementation of the construction project of the most up-to-date nuclear centre in South America", according to Bolivia’s minister of hydrocarbons of energy, Luis Alberto Sanchez. Details of the document defining terms and milestones of the project were also finalised. "Two initial contracts will be signed based on this document: for engineering surveys and geological studies on the site and on creation of infrastructure of the future centre," Sanchez said.
