Bulgaria is closing two reactors of its Kozloduy nuclear power station in the hours before joining the EU - one of the last remaining conditions of membership.

Bulgaria agreed to shut four older reactors, out of a total of six units, at the Kozloduy nuclear plant to meet the safety requirements of the European Union.

Two of Kozloduy's older reactors, dating from the 1970s, were closed in 2002, when Bulgaria started accession negotiations.

Two hours before Bulgaria enters the European Union, on December 31, it starts closing down two of its main nuclear reactors, sacrificing valuable energy exports.

To make up for the absence of any confinement facilities, reactors 3 and 4 have been equipped with a cooling system which should rule out any radioactive leaks.

Bulgaria, which has provided 75% percent of southeastern Europe's power exports, has cancelled those exports for next year to meet domestic demand, after Kozloduy's output is reduced.

Kozloduy's two newer 1,000-megwatt reactors each will continue operating, following a EUR 200 M modernisation to be funded by the EU.

The two units will be decommissioned despite a decision voted by MEPs from the External Relations Committee amending a report on Bulgaria, which urged for a more flexible approach to two units closure at Kozloduy.

The European lawmakers have suggested that the proposal for an eight-month delay in the decommissioning of Kozloduy nuke units 3 and 4 be voted separately.

But the amendment was skipped over during voting in plenary, so it did not come to meet revived expectations of prolonging the life of key energy sources.

Electricity exports of Bulgaria would fall from 7.6 billion kWh to about 1.5 billion kWh, threatening winter power cuts across the whole Balkan region, Sofia has warned.

Albania and Montenegro, which suffer chronic electricity shortages caused by rising demand and lack of investment in new generating capacity, are likely to be worst hit. Greece and Serbia could also face power cuts at times of peak demand.

While preparing Kozloduy's units for closedown, Sofia has selected an international consortium to build a USD 4 B nuclear plant at Belene.

The consortium is led by Atomstroyexport, the Russian nuclear power utility in which Gazprom holds a 45% stake, and other consortium partners are Siemens of Germany and Areva of France. The project includes two 1,000 MW units with a 60-year lifespan.

The European Commission has not raised objections, although the Bulgarian government's choice of partner does not fit with the EU's policy of reducing dependence on Russian energy suppliers.

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