Hungary is interested in accelerating the construction of the new blocs at the Paks nuclear power plant (NPP) to make them operational by 2030, as Russian state nuclear agency Rosatom expressed readiness to implement the project, Hungarian Foreign and Trade Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Wednesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th May, 2022) Hungary is interested in accelerating the construction of the new blocs at the Paks nuclear power plant (NPP) to make them operational by 2030, as Russian state nuclear agency Rosatom expressed readiness to implement the project, Hungarian Foreign and Trade Minister Peter Szijjarto said on Wednesday.
"Due to the energy crisis it is necessary to speed the development of the Paks NPP ... The European Union made it clear that a use of atomic energy for civilian purposes is exempt from sanctions, and we would like to continue expansion of the Paks," Szijjarto told the parliament.
The official also said that he had already met with the Rosatom leadership in Istanbul, and received assurances of their readiness to implement the project.
"Put it otherwise, our purpose is to launch an operation of the new blocs by 2030 with accelerating investment," he added.
Paks, Hungary's only NPP, is located 100 kilometers (62 miles) south of Budapest and about 5 kilometers from the city of Paks. At present, built to Soviet design, Paks NPP operates four power units with VVER-440 reactors and generates about a half of the country's electricity.
In 2014, Russia and Hungary signed an inter-governmental agreement on the Paks II project to expand the plant by constructing two new VVER-1200 reactors, with Moscow granting about 10 billion euro ($10.9 billion) in loans to finance over 80% of the project. Preparation of the construction site began in 2019. The principal contractor is Rosatom's Engineering Division - JSC Atomproekt.
