Hungarian government insists on Russian nuclear power: amendment to Paks contract signed

The amended construction contract of the upgrade of the Paks nuclear plant has been signed, marking the end of the project’s preparatory phase and paving the way for the start of construction works, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said on Friday.

The signing of the contract is an important milestone in the construction of the new reactor blocks, Péter Szijjártó said after a video call with Alexey Likhachev, Rosatom’s chief executive, and a meeting with Alexander Merten, the deputy head of ASE, the Rosatom unit that is the general contractor for the project.

The signing of the new construction contract was made possible by the modified financing contract’s entry into force on 16 August, Szijjártó told a joint press conference with Merten.

There are several provisions in the new contract that will speed up and facilitate progress in the project in the coming period, the minister said. Work on the diaphragm wall is ongoing, with 467 metres of it already built, and groundwork for block six is set to get under way, he said, adding that ground consolidation work was set to start in the autumn.

The signing of the new construction contract and the transition to the project’s construction phase will make it possible to pour the first concrete by the end of next year and reach another key milestone, Szijjártó said.

Meanwhile, Szijjártó said the project’s financial transactions were ongoing for which the necessary contract modifications were completed.

The Paks upgrade is a major international project that is not subject to any sanctions, with both Rosatom and Hungary cooperating with several Western companies, he said.

Szijjártó said Europe would not impose any sanctions on the nuclear industry in the future either, emphasising that Hungary would never support such a step, as it would go against its national interests.

Energy security is one of the most critical issues today, he said, adding that the countries that can produce as much of their own energy as possible would be the most secure in the future.

In Hungary’s case, nuclear power plants are the only way to produce large amounts of energy, Szijjártó said, adding that nuclear energy was a safe, environmentally friendly and cheap way to produce electricity.

The upgrade of the Paks plant is therefore a long-term guarantee of affordable energy in Hungary, the minister said. Hungary therefore views any attacks against or moves aimed at blocking the project as attempted violations of its sovereignty, he added.

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