Hungary Greenlights Russian Nuclear Project

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Written by Martin Lynch, European News Editor for Industrial Info (Galway, Ireland)--Hungary has greenlit the construction of two new nuclear reactors with Russia's state-owned company Rosatom (Moscow, Russia).

The announcement was made by Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó, who said: "This is a big step, an important milestone." The Paks II decision comes eight years after Hungary struck a deal with Rosatom that would see the company add two 1,200-megawatt (MW) units, based on Generation III+ VVER-1200 technology, to the existing Paks nuclear power plant, located 100 kilometers south of Budapest. Paks already uses four older VVER-440 reactors that were installed in the 1980s and which supply around 2,000 MW of power--more than one-third of Hungary's electricity.

The deal ran afoul of the European Commission (EC) in 2014 as Hungary awarded the deal to Rosatom without an open tender process. In return, Rosatom controversially agreed to loan Hungary 10 billion euro (US$10 billion) of the estimated 12.5 billion-euro (US$12.5 billion) construction costs. It was finally cleared by the EC in 2017. For additional information, see March 13, 2017, article - EU Clears Hungary's Paks II Nuclear Project.

Hungary's construction permit, despite Russia's war in Ukraine, is seen as a further example of the close ties between Hungary's prime minister, Viktor Orbán, and Russian president, Vladimir Putin. Earlier this year, Finland's leading energy company, Fennovoima Oy (Helsinki, Finland), pulled the plug on the troubled Hanhikivi 1 nuclear power plant project, blaming Rosatom for continued delays and the war in Ukraine for making the project too risky. For additional information, see May 10, 2022, article - Finland's Fennovoima Cancels Russian Nuclear Power Project.

Szijjártó commented: "Today, the Paks II NPP project is taking another leap forward. The construction license confirms that the project complies with the international and Hungarian safety requirements. It is entirely feasible that Hungary will have two new power units by 2030, thus ensuring the stability of the energy supply." Preparations for the main construction project are underway with soil reinforcement, construction of the anti-filtration curtains, and construction of the temporary works area facilities.

Alexey Likhachev, Rosatom director general, added: "An enormous amount of work has been accomplished together with our Hungarian partners to prepare the documentation. The construction license for the new power units of the Hungarian NPP demonstrates firm belief in the Russian VVER-1200 technology, which has successfully passed the test of time and proved its safety and reliability. We are confident that the Paks II NPP will guarantee Hungary's energy sovereignty for almost a century and bring European countries closer to achieving climate goals."

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