Nigeria-Russia Set to Sign Nuclear Deal

Nigeria and Russia are to sign a nuclear energy cooperation accord next Wednesday when President Dmitry Medvedev becomes the first Kremlin leader to visit Nigeria, officials said.

A joint venture between Russian oil and gas giant Gasprom and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) will also be signed during the one day visit, Nigerian presidential spokesman Olusegun Adeniyi said, hailing what he called a “historic” visit by Medvedev.
“It will be the first ever visit by the head of state of the Russian Federation to Nigeria,” said Adeniyi.

Adeniyi said the nuclear agreement “is for cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy especially for the purpose of electricity.”

Russia and Nigeria signed an agreement on March 18 this year to cooperate in building nuclear reactors in the West African country and jointly explore for uranium.

The protocol “foresees the possibility of bilateral cooperation for the development of Nigeria’s nuclear infrastructure” and the “joint exploration and exploitation of uranium deposits,” Russia’s nuclear energy agency Rosatom said.

Nigeria believes there is “much to gain from closer ties with Russia given its oil and gas industry,” the spokesman said.

AllAfrica