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Hungary, Japan sign nuclear cooperation pact
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The minister of foreign affairs and trade of Hungary and Japan said in Tokyo on Tuesday that the two countries have signed an agreement on cooperation in nuclear energy, including the technological development of small modular reactors.
According to a ministry statement, Péter Szijjártó met Japan’s ministers of economy, infrastructure and foreign affairs, before announcing that the two countries have signed a cooperation agreement on nuclear energy based on their shared intention to increase the role of nuclear energy and expand their nuclear capacities.
Szijjártó said nuclear energy was “the safest, cheapest, most reliable and most eco-friendly method of producing electricity in large quantity, … which would be critical to economic growth in the coming period”.
He said Hungary and Japan‘s agreement on cooperating on extending the lifespans of their nuclear plants’ blocks was an important step forward, adding that preparations for this were already under way in the case of the reactors that operate at Hungary’s Paks plant.
Szijjártó said this was also vital for preserving competitiveness as well as keeping household energy prices low in Hungary.
The two countries will also cooperate on the technological development of small modular reactors, he said, adding that this could bring about “revolutionary change” in “the world’s energy industry”.
He said if the technologies used to build and connect such small nuclear reactors to the network could be made permanent, Hungary would have a vested interest in their application.