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Paks 2 / Hungary Submits Licence Application For Two New Reactor Units

By David Dalton
1 July 2020

€12bn project is ‘serious opportunity for region’, says minister
Hungary Submits Licence Application For Two New Reactor Units
A computer-generated image of the Paks 2 nuclear project in Hungary. Courtesy Paks II.
Hungary has submitted a licence application for the construction of two Generation III+ nuclear power plants at the Paks nuclear site in central Hungary to the Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority (HAEA).

János Süli, minister without portfolio responsible for the planning, construction and commissioning of the two new units at Paks 2, said 283,000 pages of documentation were submitted on 30 June.

Paks II, the company overseeing the Paks 2 project, told NucNet that the documentation had also been shown at a meeting of mayors, MPs and local residents’ groups in Budapest.

“The documentation submitted today details how the units planned for Paks meet every Hungarian and European Union regulation and safety requirement”, said Mr Süli.

He said the HAEA now has 12 months to consider the application, with a possible extension of three months. The HAEA will involve the International Atomic Energy Agency in its work and may ask for additional data and information,” Mr Süli added.

“The construction of the two new units is a serious opportunity for the region, with a lot of related investments in roads, housing and industry, Mr Süli said. “There will have to be improvements in the areas of healthcare, education and other services.

An agreement signed in 2014 will see Russia supply two VVER-1200 pressurised water reactors for Paks 2, and a loan of up to €10bn to finance 80% of the €12bn project.

In April the European Commission approved a draft of an amendment to a government decree on site preparatory work for the construction of two new units at Paks.

The amendment to the decree is intended to allow the groundwork to start earlier, ensuring the conditions for continuous work at the Paks 2 project site, Mr Süli said in a statement emailed to NucNet.

The Paks nuclear station, the country’s only commercial nuclear facility, already has four Russia-supplied VVER units with a total gross capacity of 2,000 MW in commercial operation. The government has said that without the two new units it will not be able to reach its climate and energy security goals.

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