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Central Europe
November 16, 2018 www.intellinews.com I Page 10
drew attention to incidents such as burning of the EU flag or chants in honour of Janusz Walus, a far-right extremist serving life in a South African prison for assassinating Nelson Mandela’s ally Chris Hani in 1993.
Hungary’s nuclear power plant expansion reportedly delayed
bne IntelliNews
The Hungarian government has denied reports that the construction of two new blocks at the Paks nuclear facility may only be completed in 2032, five to six years behind schedule, local media reported on November 12.
The Paks expansion, the largest ever investment in Hungary, will see Russian state atomic energy group Rosatom build two new reactors for €12.5bn, doubling capacity. The power
plant accounts for half of Hungary's electricity production and a third of the consumption.
However, left-wing daily Nepszava reported on Monday, citing experts involved in the project, that the expansion of the nuclear power plant will only be completed in 2032, instead of the planned 2026-27 deadline.
The conservative government of Viktor Orban argues that the investment is necessary to meet Hungary's rising energy needs as two of the four existing blocks will be shut down in the 2030s after they reach maturity.
There was no official target date for the comple- tion of the new blocks specified in the 2014 inter-
The organisers also underlined the march was a grassroots undertaking of Polish nationalists and distanced themselves from PiS. The government, however, boasted about the overall turnout of the march, which it called “the biggest ever [patriotic] manifestation in Warsaw.”
Constructions of new blocks at Paks may only be completed in 2032.
governmental agreement signed by Orban and Russian President Vladimir Putin in January 2014 in Moscow. Soon after inking the deal, govern- ment officials spoke of a 2023 completion date for the first block.
Under the financing part of the agreement, there is a 2026 date specified for the first block to go operational. This is the date from which Hungary would have to start repaying the €10bn Russian loan, which initially carries a 3.95% interest, which rises incrementally to 4.95% over the next 21 years. The government hoped to start refinancing the loan when the first block goes operational.
Hungary has not publicly raised the prospect of modifying the contract. Instead, it took out loans to refinance the costly Russian loan on the inter- national markets, as monetary conditions im- proved substantially since 2014 allowing Hungary to raise funds at more favourable conditions.
According to Nepszava’s sources, the content
and quality of the Russian plans do not meet EU standards and were rejected for failing to conform to strict standards. The lack of skilled workers is also a very pressing issue, it adds.