Ouagadougou: Burkina Faso and the Russian Federation are nearing the finalization of an intergovernmental agreement focused on the use of nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, as reported by the Ministry of Energy.
According to Burkina Information Agency, sources from the Burkinabe Ministry of Energy, Mines and Quarries have confirmed that the agreement document is both harmonized and finalized. The signing of this crucial agreement is expected to occur during the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, set to take place from June 18-21, 2025, in Russia.
The Burkinabe Minister of Foreign Affairs recently revealed, following a Russia-ESA ministerial meeting in Moscow, that the necessary work on the documents has been completed. An agreement is anticipated to be signed in the coming weeks, signaling a new chapter in Burkina-Russia cooperation concerning the development of a nuclear power program in Burkina Faso.
A significant step towards this collaboration was taken in June 2024, when the Burkinabe Minister of Energy, Yacouba Zabr© Gouba, initialed a roadmap and relevant documents relating to a memorandum of understanding for constructing Burkina Faso’s first nuclear power plant.
In further developments, a Rosatom delegation visited Ouagadougou in August 2024, following the January 2024 visit of Mikhail Chudakov, the IAEA’s deputy director and head of department, who acknowledged Burkina Faso’s decision to pursue nuclear energy development.
A prior memorandum of understanding for cooperation on atomic energy use had been signed between Burkina Faso and Russia on October 13, 2023. This followed discussions in Moscow in July 2023, where Burkina Faso’s President, Captain Ibrahim Traor©, emphasized to Russian President Vladimir Putin the urgent need for a nuclear power plant to potentially double Burkina Faso’s energy production by 2030.