CAIRO, March 19 (RIA Novosti) - Russia and Egypt are due to sign an agreement on cooperation in the nuclear energy sector in the near future, an Egyptian daily said on Wednesday, citing a source in Egypt's electricity and energy ministry.
"An agreement on nuclear energy cooperation has been drafted and will be signed soon," al-Masry al-Youm quoted the source as saying.
The Russian industry and energy minister expressed hope that it would be possible to prepare the document for signing before a visit to Moscow by Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, scheduled for late March.
"I hope the introduction of the agreement will enable Russian companies to offer competitive proposals ... for participation in projects in Egypt," Viktor Khristenko said.
The document will lay the foundation for nuclear energy cooperation between Egypt and Russia and will strengthen relations between Russian companies and Egypt, the source said.
However, the agreement will not automatically mean that Russian companies will build nuclear power plants in Egypt.
"Companies will be selected at an international tender to be announced by the Egyptian government at the end of the year," the source said.
Egypt's Minister of Foreign Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid said, "The number of potential partners is limited. These are primarily Russia and another three or four countries."
An Egyptian political analyst said that the agreement would allow Russia to build nuclear power plants in Egypt, train Egyptian personnel and supply nuclear fuel, adding that cooperation with Russia was more advantageous than with the U.S. as Washington imposed tough restrictions, including regular inspections and control.
According to Rashwan, the U.S. is pressuring Egypt to place its nuclear program under U.S. control to protect the security of Israel.
The first nuclear power plant is expected to be commissioned in Egypt in eight years. The country's electricity and energy minister, Hassan Ahmed Younis, said earlier that the project would cost between $1.5 billion and $2 billion.
