Hungary urges EC not to include nuclear energy in the list of sanctions

MOSCOW, 12 Sep — PRIME. The Hungarian Foreign Ministry called on the European Commission to ensure that nuclear energy is not subject to sanctions and that all European institutions comply with this provision, said Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó.

“The first package of Brussels sanctions said that nuclear energy is not subject to sanctions. We call on the European Commission to ensure that all Brussels institutions, all national authorities and all banks operating in Europe comply with this provision,” the head of the Hungarian Foreign Ministry wrote on social networks.

According to him, Budapest has accelerated investments in the Paks-2 nuclear power plant so that the new units “contribute to the country’s safe energy supply as soon as possible” and noted that he would devote his speech to this topic at the Congress on the Nuclear Energy Industry of Central and Eastern Europe.

At the end of August, the Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority issued a general license for the construction of the fifth and sixth units of the Paks-2 nuclear power plant, the fifth reactor vessel of the Paks-2 nuclear power plant, and six permits for the construction of a “nuclear island”.

The only nuclear power plant in Hungary, Paks, is located 100 kilometers from Budapest and five from the city of Paks. The station was built according to the Soviet project, it operates four units with VVER-440 reactors. The Paks nuclear power plant now generates almost half of all electricity in Hungary, and with the planned commissioning of two new Paks units, this share is expected to double. For Hungary, nuclear energy is a way to ensure its energy security, the leadership of this country has repeatedly emphasized.

At the end of 2014, Russia and Hungary signed documents on the construction at Paks NPP of new power units No. 5 and No. 6 with reactor plants according to the advanced Russian project VVER-1200, which meets the most modern standards of reliability and safety. It was reported that Russia would give Hungary a state loan of up to 10 billion euros for the Paks-2 project, and the total cost of the work would be 12.5 billion euros.