Belene Nuclear Plant High on Tadic Agenda in Bulgaria

Business » ENERGY | July 13, 2010, Tuesday // 09:51
Bulgaria: Belene Nuclear Plant High on Tadic Agenda in Bulgaria Serbian President Boris Tadic will pay a visit to Bulgaria on Friday. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Serbian President Boris Tadic is expected to discuss the country's participation in Bulgaria's second nuclear power plant of Belene during his upcoming visit to Sofia on Friday.

Tadic is scheduled to confer with Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov and Belene will be a major topic on the agenda of the meeting.

Bulgaria's Economy and Energy Ministry is not ready yet to approach the Serbian side with a final offer and last-minute revisions are highly likely, local media reports say.

Talking about Tadic visit to Bulgaria at the end of last week, Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov expressed hopes that the Serbian president will give an affirmative answer to Belene offer and the country will acquire a minority stake in the nuclear plant.

“This is how we can guarantee our electricity sales to the Serbian market. This is how the future of the project can become clearer,” Borisov told the Bulgarian National TV channel.

About two months ago Serbia's energy minister confirmed reports that the country is considering participation in Bulgaria's second nuclear power plant, which has stalled over lack of funding.

"The Bulgarian prime minister officially made an offer for Serbia to participate in financing construction of the Belene plant," Energy Minister Petar Skundric told an energy conference on May 19. "We haven't made the decision yet, but we are interested."

In his words the project would show that the country, which has an embargo on nuclear power plants until 2015 put in place following the Chernobyl disaster, is able to hadle such projects.

“It would be a good reference for us and allow us to respect the embargo," Skundric said. "It would also contribute to regional stability and cooperation."

The view is shared by the majority of politicians and scientists in Belgrade, who say Serbia's involvement in Belene will secure electricity supply for decades ahead from a country, which is a member of the European Union.

The government has also reportedly unsuccessfully courted Romania as it angles for a new chief investor in its second nuclear power plant Belene to replace the German energy company RWE, which withdrew last autumn.

Bulgaria suspended the construction of its second nuclear power plant until it finds a new investor and funds to complete the project at Belene, on the Danube, 180 kilometres northeast of the capital Sofia.

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Tags: Petar Skundric, Boris Tadic, Boyko Borisov, Romania, macedonia, Serbia, Atomstroiexport, RWE, Belene, Belgrade

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