The request of Captain Ibrahim Traoré, president of the transition of Burkina Faso, to Vladimir Putin, within the framework of the Russia-Africa summit, for the installation of a nuclear power plant in Burkina Faso, seems to have been heard. A memorandum for the construction of a nuclear power plant will be signed on Friday, October 13, 2023 in Moscow, according to the Burkinabé information agency (AIB).

This memorandum, which will be between Rosatom, a world leader in nuclear technology, and the Ministry of Energy of Burkina Faso, is part of the desire of the Burkinabé authorities to diversify the country's energy sources by exploring nuclear energy. The stated objective of Captain Ibrahima Traoré is to guarantee the energy autonomy of Burkina Faso and to export energy to the subregion.

This preliminary agreement, the details of which will have to be defined, occurs within the framework of the Russian Energy Week which will be held from October 11 to 13, 2023.

The government of Burkina Faso announced on Friday the signing of an agreement with Russia for the construction of a nuclear plant that will allow 'to cover the energy needs of the population' in a country where less than a quarter of the population has access to electricity. .

Burkina Faso, governed by a military regime since last year, seeks to diversify its partners and has established a rapprochement with Russia.

"The government of Burkina Faso signed a memorandum of understanding for the construction of a nuclear plant," he said in a statement.

"The construction of this nuclear plant in Burkina Faso aims to satisfy the energy needs of the population," the text continued.

The signing of this agreement took place during the Russian Energy Week in Moscow, in which the Minister of Energy of Burkina, Simon-Pierre Boussim, participated.

The document "materializes the wish of the president of Faso, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, expressed last July during the Russia-Africa Summit, in a meeting with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin," details the statement from the government of Burkina Faso.

At the end of 2020, only 22.5% of Burkinabe people (67.4% in urban areas, 5.3% in rural areas) had access to electricity, according to data from the African Development Bank.

Burkina Faso is governed by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, who came to power through a coup in September 2022, his second in eight months.

Since its rise to power, Burkina Faso has distanced itself from France, its historical partner and former colonial power, achieving the withdrawal of French forces from its territory in February.

Fuente del artículo: reuters