OREANDA-NEWS. During a regular meeting, on November 6, 2007, the heads of Governments of Russia and China signed a series of framework documents on further cooperation on the peaceful use of nuclear energy, Techsnabexport's press division reported.  Concurrent with the signing by the Head of Rosatom S.V.Kiriyenko and Chairman of Committee on Defense Science, Technology and Industry of People s Republic of China Jhan Zinwei of a Protocol to the December 18, 1992 Russian-Chinese intergovernmental agreement on cooperation to erect in the People's Republic of China a gaseous centrifuge uranium enrichment facility for nuclear power industry, heads of the Parties'  authorized entities -  Director-General of JSC  Techsnabexport,  Alexei Grigoriev and President of the Chinese Atomic Energy Industry Company (CAEIC), Chen Sinyan   signed a framework agreement on technical aid in construction of the fourth line of the gaseous centrifuge facility. The framework agreement specifies the algorithm for practical coordination of the Parties'  activities in fulfilling the obligations stipulated by the above intergovernmental Protocol.

Namely, the framework agreement has fixed the intention of the JSC  Techsnabexport  and CAEIC to take effort necessary to speed up finalizing and signing of the contracts on technical aid to construct in the People s Republic of China (Hanzhun) a gaseous centrifuge facility with an annual capacity of 500 thousand SWU per year and on deliveries within eleven years, starting from 2010, of Russian uranium products to meet the demands of China's nuclear power industry. To this end, the JSC  Techsnabexport  shall no later than  November 30, 2007 submit to CAEIC the relevant draft contracts.

Within the framework of the above Agreement dated 1992 and Additional Protocol dated 1996, three lines of gaseous centrifuge facility

based on Russian technology have been constructed in the People's Republic of China:
October 1996 -  a first line with an annual capacity of 200 thousand SWU per year in Hanjun;
May 1998 -  a second line with an annual capacity of 300 thousand SWU per year (same location)
November 2001 - a third line with an annual capacity of 500 thousand SWU per year in Lanzhou.