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KIGALI. – The Rwandan government signed an agreement on Tuesday with a German-Canadian start-up to build an “experimental” civil nuclear reactor, in order to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels.

The reactor will be ready for testing in 2026, according to the start-up that will build it, Dual Fluid Energy.

These “reactors can be used to produce electricity, hydrogen, and synthetic fuels at lower costs than fossil fuels,” Dual Fluid Energy CEO Gotz Ruprecht said at a conference in Kigali

The use of nuclear power will provide “a stable and reliable source of electricity, reducing dependence on hydrocarbons and helping to meet the growing demand for energy”, said Infrastructure Minister Ernest Nsabimama.

Rwanda signed a deal in 2019 to build nuclear power plants in collaboration with Russia’s Federal Atomic Energy Agency Rosatom, sparking strong opposition due to concerns over security.

South Africa is the only country on the continent to have a civil nuclear programme. – AFP