The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced that it has been exploring options to generate electricity from nuclear materials
Towards this end, experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have been invited by the government to conduct a week-long training for nuclear practitioners and security officers on the extraction, exploitation and utilisation of uranium.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of the National Training Course on Nuclear Security for the Uranium Extraction Industry in Abuja, the minister of solid minerals development Kayode Fayemi, stated that it was important for Nigeria to exploit available resources in order to meet its power needs.
The minister of Solid Minerals Development, Kayode Fayemi, said at the opening ceremony for the national training course on nuclear security for the uranium extraction industry in Abuja, that it was important for Nigeria to exploit available resources to meet its power needs.
Deputy director Wuyep Karnap, who was representing Fayemi said that at the National Council on Power conference in Kaduna, the issue of uranium for power generation was canvassed as a vital component in the energy mix equation.
“So, this training is coming at the right time where the capacity to explore, exploit and utilise uranium for power generation and other uses cannot be overemphasised. And apart from the exploration, exploitation and utilisation, the security and health aspects of uranium need to be taken care of, and that is why we have security delegates here,” he said.
IAEA senior nuclear security officer Robert Larsen said at the course that the exploration of uranium in Nigeria does not pose any threat to global security and gave the Federal Government the backing for the initiative.
