June 17 (Reuters) - A number of countries in central,
eastern and southeastern Europe plan to build new nuclear power
reactors or extend the life of existing ones to meet growing
domestic demand and replace ageing power capacity.
Following are key facts on major projects:
ALBANIA
- The country, which suffers chronic power shortages, said
last year it wanted to develop nuclear power generation and was
ready to invite Italians to build a plant on its soil.
- Italian power utility Enel <ENEI.MI> has said it was
looking into nuclear opportunities in Albania in the "very long
term".
BULGARIA
- Bulgaria, where nuclear energy supplied 33 percent of all
power last year, plans a new 2,000 megawatt (MW) nuclear power
plant by 2014-2015. It has picked German utility RWE <RWEG.DE>
as a strategic investor for 49 percent of the plant.
- The project faces delays due to funding problems in times
of a global crisis and rightist opposition parties have called
for its freeze. The Socialist-led cabinet said in May it was in
talks to get a 3.8 billion euro ($5.3 billion) loan from Russia.
- Sofia has contracted Russia's Atomstroiexport, along with
France's Areva <CEPFi.PA> and Germany's Siemens <SIEGn.DE>, to
build the plant in a 4.0 billion euro deal.
CZECH REPUBLIC
- Power group CEZ <> has unveiled a preliminary
plan to build two new units of 3,400 MW at its Temelin nuclear
power plant.
- The country has six operational reactors and relies on
nuclear for about 32 percent of its electricity.
HUNGARY
- Hungary has one nuclear power plant with four 480 MW
reactors, which supplied about 37 percent of total electricity
last year.
- In March, Hungary's parliament passed a resolution which
allows preparatory work to begin on extending the Paks nuclear
power plant with a further bloc. The new reactor could take 11
years to be constructed, according to media reports.
LITHUANIA
- The Baltic country, where nuclear accounted for 73 percent
of the electricity in 2008, has faced many delays in the planned
construction of a new 3,200-3,400 MW plant.
- Poland and the other two Baltic states, Latvia and
Estonia, have expressed interest in taking part in the new
plant, which will replace the Soviet-era Ignalina plant that
Lithuania is obliged to shut down by the end of this year.
POLAND
- The government has decided to build one or two nuclear
power plants, with the first expected by 2020, to break its
reliance on coal as the main source of energy.
- Power producer PGE will be responsible for building the
country's first nuclear power plants in a joint venture with a
yet unnamed technology supplier.
- The recently appointed government official responsible for
the project, Hanna Trojanowska, has said the 2020 deadline is
"tough."
ROMANIA
- The Balkan country, where the two nuclear reactors at the
Cernavoda plant accounted for 17.5 percent of all power in 2008,
plans two more reactors, each of 720 MW, at the same site by
around 2015. The investment is estimated at around 4 billion
euros.
- Romania's partners to build the two new reactors are
French power giant GDF Suez <GSZ.PA>, Germany's RWE, Czech
company CEZ, Italy's Enel <ENEI.MI>, Spain's Iberdrola <IBE.MC>
and a local unit of steel giant ArcelorMittal.
- Romania plans to pick the location and a consultant for a
second nuclear plant of between 2,000 and 2,400 MW in the second
half of this year, a deputy economy minister said in May.
SLOVAKIA
- Nuclear energy contributed for 56 percent of Slovakia's
electricity in 2008.
- Slovakia and the Czech Republic signed a deal in May to
build a nuclear reactor in Jaslovske Bohunice in western
Slovakia at an estimated cost of 4-6 billion euros. Under the
contracts, CEZ and Slovak state energy company JAVYS formed a
joint venture to build and operate the new plant.
- Dominant power company Slovenske Elektrarne SE, controlled
by Enel, has said it aims to complete two new blocks, each with
a power capacity of 440 MW, at the Mochovce plant.
TURKEY
- Ankara passed a law in 2006 to allow for the construction
of Turkey's first nuclear power plant to meet growing energy
demand.
- A government assessment of a tender to build the estimated
$7.5 billion plant is yet to be announced. A consortium of
Russia's Atomstroiexport-Inter RAO <IRAO.MM> and Park Teknik
submitted the only bid. Two more nuclear licenses will also be
sold.
Sources: The International Atomic Energy Agency (www.iaea.org);
Slovenske Elektrarne (www.seas.sk), Reuters
(Compiled by Anna Mudeva, editing by Anthony Barker)
