Bulgaria must pay by the end of the year an installment of EUR 67 M for its second nuclear power plant project, which has stalled over lack of a new investor and funding, a deputy minister has said.

“Bulgaria's outstanding payments for the project by the end of the year stand at EUR 67 M. The future expenses will depend on the work conducted by Russia's Atomstroyexport, commissioned to build the planned 2,000 megawatt plant,” Deputy Minister Marij Kosev said in an interview for Trud daily.

He added that the Bulgarian government is currently holding negotiations with the Russian company in a bid to reduce its operations as much as possible.

“There is too much goings-on, but at the same time it is hard for us to pay,” the deputy minister said.

He pointed out that the government is exploring ways to reschedule the outstanding payments even after it successfully finds a strategic investor.

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.

The government has reportedly courted Romania, Serbia and Macedonia as it angles for a company to replace the German energy company RWE, which withdrew last autumn.

The plant was originally to be built by Russian company Atomstroyexport for EUR 4 B. The first reactor is expected to be built by mid-September for delivery to the site. Bulgaria has to pay an installment of EUR 280 M in addition to EUR 300 M already paid.

Last month Bulgaria's Prime Minister Boyko Borisov unexpectedly said that his country was “giving up” on Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline project decision, and that construction on the planned Belene nuclear power plant had been suspended.

In a dramatic twist that left all of Europe confused, Borisov retracted his statements shortly afterwards, saying that the Bulgarian government hasn’t made a final decision regarding the construction of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline and Belene nuclear power plant.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!