Paks nuclear plant project

Here is PM Orbán’s new ally to hack the EU: Macron and the French plutocracy

PM Orbán and Macron

It seems more and more French companies will get profitable business in Hungary due to the weakening German-Hungarian economic relationship. The cooperation spans from the energy sector to the buying up of the Budapest Airport, also in the ownership of a German company. Macron and Orbán will hack the EU together and pave the way for an unprecedented Paris-Budapest alliance changing the entire Central European region?

Historically, the French and Hungarians were never allies or even friends. Traditionally, Hungary is part of the German world. Now, we are the backyard of the astonishing German industrial power. However, reports say that Germany’s flagship, the carmaking industry is struggling. Furthermore, during the Merkel leadership, Hungary provided tax exemptions, administrational support, etc. for German companies to make huge profits here (and take it out from the country). In return, Merkel allowed Orbán to get all the EU funds, and Brussels’ criticism never crossed “the Rubicon”.

But Merkel is in the past, Olaf Scholz did show respect towards Orbán during the latter’s visit in 2022 in Berlin. A high-ranking government official said Orbán developed the impression that Hungary is no longer for the Germans, Válasz Online wrote. Therefore, he started to search for new ties.

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France can be a surprise for many, knowing the history of Hungary. In the 19th century, famous Hungarian poets, thinkers, writers, and politicians regarded France and the French Revolution as a pattern for Hungary. But by the end of the 19th century, that admiration was gained, and the Peace Treaty of Trianon (1920) after the lost WWI, during which Hungary lost 2/3rd of its territory and 1/3 of its Hungarian population, gave the final blow to it. Interestingly, there were negotiations in 1920 to e.g. sell the MÁV to the French to have favourable borders, but such plans died quickly. Hungary remained on the pro-German, anti-France side.

Orbán and Macron

After Orbán’s landslide victory in 2010, life for French companies became challenging. For example, the government put the French out of the cafeteria business in 2012 even though they had to pay a HUF 20 billion compensation later. That attitude changed after 2015-2016.

Macron and Orbán started to cooperate when they overthrew Manfred Weber from the presidency of the European Commission together. And after Merkel’s retirement, Scholz’s inauguration and Germany’s developing negligation, Orbán seems to have turned towards Paris.

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The cooperation affects many sectors. One is the political sphere. Orbán no longer meets any of the leading European politicians regularly. The only exception is Macron: they met three times in the last four years for bilateral talks. Moreover, the French may provide nuclear fuel for the Paks NPP instead of Russia. Additionally, there are ambitious plans in the making. One is the joint buyup of the Budapest Airport with the French Vinci Airports. The other is an ultra-high-speed railway project connecting Bucharest with Budapest following the French dream of linking together Central European capitals with such trains.

France’s ally in the Central European region were Poland and Romania. But they became too “pro-USA” in the last few years. Therefore, Orbán’s turn is favourable for Paris for two reasons. They can break into “Germany’s backyard”, and find a new ally in the region. That plan may ricochet if Trump gets elected though because Hungary would probably order American F-35 fighters instead of the French Rafales.

Hungary-Russia contract concerning Paks NPP upgrade still kept in secret

Paks Nuclear Power Plant

Benedek Jávor, the European Union adviser of the opposition Párbeszéd-Greens, expressed concern over the government’s secrecy concerning the insurance contracts of the upgrade of the Paks nuclear plant on Saturday.

At an online press conference broadcast on Facebook, Jávor said it was one of the key issues of the Paks upgrade whether the project is adequately insured. This is important so that the financial consequences of unexpected events are not burdened on Hungarian taxpayers, he said.

Jávor said it was reason for concern that in this year’s amendment to the contract between the Hungarian and Russian partners, “the Hungarian party waived its right to consent regarding the contracts concluded by Rosatom, and gave the general contractor a free hand on how to guarantee financial collaterals in the event of a delay or accident”.

He said it was also problematic that a brokerage tender was called for the Hungarian insurance of the project, which was won by a unit of the group owned by the businessman Lőrinc Mészáros as a single bidder. The deadlines set in the original tender were modified several times, and it is still unclear whether the company fulfilled the public procurement requirements and the appropriate insurance has been taken out, he added.

Parbeszed-Greens have asked these questions in writing but the government only gave “cynical” one-sentence answers stating that the Paks project had all the necessary contracts, Jávor said.

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Hungarian minister shared how the EU’s competitiveness can be improved

Hungarian foreign minister Péter Szijjártó (Copy)

In the absence of a big increase in nuclear capacity, the European Union’s competitiveness and energy security will not improve and its climate goals will not be met, the minister of foreign affairs and trade told the general assembly of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna on Monday.

Péter Szijjártó said Europe was living through “the greatest economic, security and energy crises” of the past decades, and the only way to improve its competitiveness, guarantee energy security and maintain its ambitions in environmental protection was to boost nuclear capacity, so producing large amounts of energy cheaply and safely.

He said annual output of the world’s 440 nuclear plants was equal to 180 billion cubic meters of natural gas consumption.

“If we really want to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, we must at least double capacities,” he said. “Otherwise, Europe clearly will not be able to maintain competitiveness and achieve its climate goals.”

So it’s necessary to end the ideological and political debates on the use of nuclear energy, to put a stop to ideological and political attacks on nuclear energy, eliminate discrimination, and create a level playing field, he said.

Hungary, he said, had gladly signed the letter on the “undoubted” advantages of nuclear energy the IAEA’s director general sent to this year’s UN COP28 climate conference.

Briefing the assembly on the upgrade of Hungary’s Paks nuclear plant, Szijjártó said determining a country’s energy mix was a “physical” issue rather than a political one.

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He said Hungary regarded energy supplies as an issue of national sovereignty and any obstruction of “our nuclear investments is an attack on our sovereignty”.

Hungary, he added, would “never support EU sanctions that may harm its nuclear cooperation with Russia, as this would undermine national interests”.

Hungary’s recent efforts to improve competitiveness and create a manufacturing hub for Eastern and Western investors had increased demand for electricity, Szijjártó said.

Besides building two new blocks in Paks, Hungary is also prolonging the life cycle of the existing four by 20 years, he noted, guaranteeing environmental protection and ensuring sufficient energy for the country’s growing economy.

Fully 65 percent of Hungary’s energy production is carbon neutral and 80 percent of that is provided by the Paks plant, he said, adding that the aim was to raise that ratio to 90 percent by 2030 and to full carbon neutrality by 2050. The two new blocks, expected to prevent the annual emission of 17 million tonnes of carbon dioxide, were key to that process, he said.

Besides Russia’s Rosatom, US, German and French companies are active in the project, using cutting-edge technology amid the strictest security measures, Szijjártó said.

Hungarian minister confident about Paks nuclear power plant’s Russian upgrade

Hungarian minister confident Paks IAEA

The upgrade of the Paks nuclear power plant, a key investment to guaranteeing Hungary’s energy security, environmental protection and competitiveness, is progressing on schedule, the minister of foreign affairs and trade said in Vienna on Monday.

Speaking ahead of a meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Péter Szijjártó said the production of nuclear energy was “mired in political and ideological debate”. A professional approach is long overdue, he added. “Nuclear energy is the solution to safely producing large quantities of electricity at competitive prices while protecting the environment,” he said. The Paks upgrade will prevent the emission of 17 million tonnes of carbon dioxide annually, he said.

Hungary say no to sanctions

In Vienna, Szijjártó met Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev and reviewed the progress of the upgrade with him. Digging is under way in the place of the new blocks, he said, adding “we will be able to connect the two new reactors to the network by 2030.” Hungary is in constant contact with Rosatom on the investment. “I told them that we had reports on certain European Union member states keeping sanctions against the nuclear industry on the agenda,” he said. “That would be going against Hungarian national interests, and we will naturally veto such a proposal, should it ever be tabled … The Paks project remains an international project, with US, German and French companies involved besides Rosatom,” Szijjártó said.

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Meeting with Rosatom’s CEO:

Hungary preparation for EU presidency ‘going well’

Preparations for Hungary’s EU presidency in the second half of 2024 are progressing very well, a state secretary of the ministry for EU affairs said in Parliament on Monday. Speaking before parliament’s committee for EU affairs, Barna Pál Zsigmond listed the priorities defined for the presidency. “The most important task is to represent the interests of the European Union as a whole,” he said, adding that an EU institutional reform and most likely the war would also be among the top priorities. Hungary will take over the rotating presidency in July, short after the European Parliament elections when “the old institutions” would still be operating while new ones were being set up, he said.

The state secretary said that other priorities included boosting the EU’s competitiveness, tackling demographic challenges, moving forward the enlargement process with special focus on the Western Balkans countries, combatting illegal migration and protecting the bloc’s borders. Strengthening the community’s defence policy and continuing its cohesion policy will also be important priorities, he said.

Rosatom head: All obstacles to Paks II construction removed, Lavrov guaranteed energy security

Russia Paks nuclear power plant

With all preparatory work completed and permits obtained over the past years, there are no obstacles standing in the way of the expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant, Rosatom CEO Alexey Likhachev said at the site which he visited together with Hungarian Foreign Ministry State Secretary Levente Magyar on Friday.

At a press conference, Magyar said that the two new blocks had to be built in order to ensure Hungary’s continued energy security and sovereignty. Likhachev told the press conference that now all conditions were in place for the construction to go according to schedule. Rosatom will fulfill all its contractual obligations in the project, he said.

Paks II will be the first nuclear facility Rosatom is building in the European Union, he said, underlining that the company would use an absolutely safe technology and best practices. He said they would speed up construction which currently works with 140 Hungarian suppliers. The number of employees will continue to increase and reach around 2,000 next year, said Likhachev. Magyar said the construction was progressing well. He called the Paks II project irreversible, insisting that it would be implemented despite and attempts seeking to thwart it.

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Szijjártó: Russian FM pledged to guarantee Hungary energy supply

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov pledged to guarantee Hungary’s energy supplies, so the delivery of gas, crude oil and nuclear fuel from Russia will be uninterrupted, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said after talks with his Russian counterpart in New York on Friday. Szijjártó met Lavrov on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session. “If other Western politicians did the same, the hope for peace in Ukraine would be greater,” he said, according to the foreign ministry’s statement.

The talks focused mainly on the war in Ukraine, and Szijjártó said he reiterated to Lavrov that Hungary had a vested interest in a swift end to the war. “I told him that we Hungarians were also losing lives in this war, and so we urge an immediate ceasefire and peace talks,” he said. “My colleague, Sergei Lavrov, also said Russia was ready for peace negotiations. There are obviously a lot of details to clarify. I do hope that at some point, circumstances will make it clear for Russia as well as for Ukraine that they have to seek the solution at the negotiating table,” Szijjártó said. Another topic of the talks was bilateral energy cooperation, he said. Lavrov said Russia would fulfil its contractual obligations, Szijjártó said.

Russia will deliver the promised amount of natural gas, crude oil and nuclear fuel by the contractual deadlines, “we can rest easy regarding Hungary’s energy supplies”, Szijjártó said. Regarding the upgrade of Hungary’s Paks nuclear plant led by Russia’s Rosatom, Szijjártó said the construction was on time for the two new blocks to be “hopefully” operational by 2030. This year, Russia has already delivered 3.3 million tonnes of crude oil and 4.2 billion cubic metres of natural gas to Hungary, he said.

The ministers said that Russia and Hungary both had an interest in maintaining the operation of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), as the only remaining forum for East-West dialogue. Szijjártó said they also touched on the issue of new Russian textbooks. “I told Sergei Lavrov that the 1956 revolution is one of the most uplifting events of Hungarian history when Hungarians turned into heroes as they stood up for the freedom and sovereignty of their homeland … which is why branding those people fascists is unacceptable for us…”

Lavrov assured Szijjártó that the issue would be handled according to President Vladimir Putin’s latest statement, the Hungarian minister said. Szijjártó and Lavrov also discussed maintaining economic cooperation in sectors not hit by sanctions.

Government kicks out the Russians from the Paks nuclear fuel business?

fuel_rods_reactor_paks_nuclear_power_plant

Energy Minister Csaba Lantos on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding with the CEO of French nuclear industry giant Framatome, with an aim to step up and expand cooperation in the peaceful use of nuclear energy, the ministry has said.

While the first agreement between the government and the Hungarian branch of Framatome in 2021 focused on training and R+D, Tuesday’s agreement signed by Lantos and the parent company’s CEO Bernard Fontana included cooperation on prolonging the lifespan of nuclear plants and fuel supplies, the ministry said in a statement.

Climate friendly, sustainable nuclear energy plays a great role in Hungary’s energy mix and in fulfilling its climate protection goals, the ministry cited Lantos as saying. France, and Framatome, are also key to Hungary’s efforts to promote cooperation among European Union member states in using nuclear energy, he said. It has a large role in maintaining European energy sovereignty and competitiveness, he said.

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Paks nuclear power plant upgrade impossible?

Paks nuclear power plant Hungary

The upgrade of the Paks nuclear plant is “impossible to carry out”, and so the government should withdraw from all contracts, the European Union adviser of the opposition Párbeszéd – Greens told a press conference on Friday.

Contrary to the government’s statements that the upgrade had been green-lighted, the project is facing increasing challenges and “has accumulated incredible delays”, Benedek Jávor said. Construction has not actually started, the project has yet to receive an implementation permit, and the war and the sanctions against Russia have prompted several amendments to the contracts, he said. The resulting “tinkering” has resulted in “many things landing in the hands of oligarchs”, he said.

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Hungarian FM: It is a realistic goal to build Paks II by 2030

Paks nuclear power plant

The expansion of Hungary’s Paks nuclear power plant has reached a new milestone with groundwork under the planned number six block now under way, and the 2030 completion target remains realistic, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said on Tuesday.

Initial groundwork is taking place at an depth of five metres, Szijjártó said, noting that this stage of the process for block number five was already complete.

Some sections of the sixth block will be up to 23 metres deep to ensure the block’s stability and safety, he said, adding that 30-40 trucks are being used to dump the soil being dug up.

Meanwhile, work on the diaphragm wall is still ongoing, with 700 metres of it already built, Szijjártó said, adding that work on the reactor storage space was under way in Russia.

“This means that the target of completing the project by 2030 remains realistic,” he said.

The expansion of the Paks power plant is vital for Hungary’s long-term energy security, the minister said, adding that the new blocks will allow Hungary to produce around 70 percent of the electricity it consumes.

Russian Rosatom starts building nuclear reactors in Paks

Paks nuclear power plant Hungary

Atomstroyexport, a unit of Russian nuclear power company Rosatom, has started building new reactors for the Paks 2 project at the site, the company said on Monday.

Hungarian subcontractors have begun ground preparations for the foundations and the housing of the VVER-1200 reactors.

The construction phase started after Hungarian and Russian representatives signed on 18 August an amendment to the contract on the construction of the two new nuclear power plant blocks.

Around 1 million cubic meters of earth must be excavated and removed in the area of block 6, and this work is scheduled to be completed by the end of the autumn, the company’s statement said.

The new construction phase applies to all the main structures, requiring a large increase in staff, machines and equipment, the statement said, adding that around 10,000 works are involved in the construction.

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

Paks nuclear power plant Hungary

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.

Paks plant further reduces output due to warming Danube

Paks Nuclear Plant Hungary

Since Tuesday, the Paks nuclear plant has reduced its output by 560 megawatts due to rising temperatures of the Danube river, the water of which is used for cooling its system.

The National Atomic Energy Agency (OAH) said on its website on Wednesday that the output was reduced by 320 megawatts on Tuesday, followed by another, 240 megawatt reduction on Wednesday. The measure has been necessitated by environmental regulations and has not impacted nuclear safety, the authority said. It added that the current technologies in place could ensure cooling the facility “even with 90 percent less water in the river or if its water were of high temperature”.

According to the plant’s internal regulations, output is reduced by 80 megawatts/0.1 C above 29.5 C of water temperature, the plant said earlier.

The threat of an impending third world war is greater than ever, says Hungarian minister in NY

common_sense_united_nations_szijjártó

Current security risks “are diverting attention away from the biggest global challenges,” Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said at a meeting of the United Nations Economic and Social Council in New York on Monday.

“The world is again being divided into blocs, rendering it almost impossible to see to tasks dedicated to protecting the environment and fighting climate change,” he said. The organisation’s 2015 sustainable development goals “are, unfortunately, now seen in a completely different light.”

Global security in past 80 years, he said, had never confronted dangers as serious as those at present. “The threat of an impending third world war is greater than ever.”

Also, the threat of terrorism around the world was growing, he said. Moreover, “nuclear capabilities are being referred to ever so brazenly and openly,” he added.

“We argue for building connections rather than blocs,” he said, calling on world leaders to “make a rational decision at the last possible minute.”

“If countries of the world, especially the largest and strongest, cannot cooperate in a civilised way, we will not find a resolution to the most burning challenges,” he said.

Szijjártó noted that the meeting focused on issues around water and safe energy supplies, adding that the Hungarian government had made “especially strong commitments” in those two areas with a view to preventing water shortage crises and finding new forms of safe energy.

He noted that Hungarian water management technologies were utilised across the world. “We Hungarians are ready to contribute to efforts to prevent water crises, because we should not forget that if there is a lasting water shortage somewhere in the world, locals there will up and leave.” “To prevent waves of migration we must prevent water-related crises,” he added.

Concerning energy, he said sustainable, long-term energy production was not possible without nuclear plants. Hungary’s Paks upgrade project, once completed by Russians, could reduce the country’s carbon dioxide emissions by an annual 17 million tonnes, he added.

“We hope that the UN will act to put an end to negative discrimination against nuclear energy in the interest of suppling the world’s growing population with safe energy,” he added.

Paks nuclear power plant in trouble: it runs with reduced performance

Paks nuclear power plant Hungary

Hungary’s nuclear power plant in Paks reduced its performance due to the significant increase in the water temperature of the Danube River, the Hungarian News Agency said in a statement.

According to telex.hu, the Danube’s water temperature reached 29.72 degrees at the measuring point. Therefore, from 4.30 PM, the nuclear power plant reduced the performance of blocks 2, 3, and 4 by 240 megawatts. According to a 2001 environmental protection ministerial decree, the water temperature around Paks cannot exceed 30 °C.

In the power plant’s interior regulation, 29.5 degrees is the intervention limit. Provided they reach that, they reduce the power plant’s performance by 80 megawatts per 0.1 °C to reach the prescribed temperature level.

River Danube near Paks:

Paks head replaced due to political reasons

Géza Pekárik did an outstanding job as the head of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant. Nobody ever complained about his work. The Orbán cabinet decorated him because of that. Even so, he was dismissed because Jánor Péter Horváth, the former leader of the Hungarian Energy and Public Utility Regulatory Authority (MEKH) needed his position, hvg.hu wrote. However, Mr Horváth does not have experience in running a nuclear facility.

Mr Horváth is an old member of Orbán’s Fidesz party. For example, he lead the party’s Szolnok organisation in the 1990s. His political career broke when the court convicted him for malpractice, but he retained his influence in the party. That is why the government did not let him leave. He had to resign from the presidency of the MEKH last year due to some Fidesz mayors’ rage caused by the skyrocketing energy prices their cities had to deal with.

However, Horváth is an oil engineer and does not have any experience in running a nuclear facility. Furthermore, the future is challenging for Paks since the Russians build two new blocks. Meanwhile, they cannot shut down the operating ones in the 2030s. Currently, waterproof walls are being built around the two new blocks:

 

Construction of Paks nuclear power plant enters new phase

Paks Nuclear Plant Hungary

Work on the diaphragm wall for the expansion of Hungary’s nuclear power plant in Paks is under way, with groundwork under the sixth block set to begin in August, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said on Wednesday.

The finalisation of the necessary permits for the full groundwork is on schedule, Szijjártó said after talks with Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko in Budapest.

Energy cooperation between Hungary and Russia is a guarantee of Hungary’s energy security, Szijjártó told a joint press conference with Murashko.

“And this is not an ideological or political matter, but a purely physical one,” he added.

“The new nuclear plant in Paks is the long-term guarantee for the security of Hungary’s energy supply, therefore Hungary will never support any sanctions on the nuclear industry,” Szijjártó said.

He welcomed that a recent approval from the European Union has opened the door to speeding up the Paks project. This has allowed construction to begin on the diaphragm wall, while groundwork for block six is set to get under way next month, he added.

Also, the ground consolidation plans are currently being finalised, he said, adding that the finalisation of the permits and plans for the full groundwork was on schedule.

Szijjártó said the Russian government was set to approve the modifications to the project’s financing contract in the coming days, which was set to be followed by the signing of the modified construction contract.

He added that Hungary will consider “any foreign legal or political manoeuvre” aimed at slowing down or blocking the project “an attack on our sovereignty”.

In response to a question, Szijjártó said that since the construction works were under way, Hungary should not abandon its target of completing the plant’s upgrade by 2030-2031.

“So I myself remain committed to putting the new blocks online by 2030-31,” Szijjártó said.

“And this is something I tell Rosatom’s executives at every single meeting, who so far have not objected to it.”

In a statement, Rosatom said on Wednesday that the diaphragm construction was part of the implementation phase which started on July 3. The works are proceeding in line with the permits of the Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority, it said. As included in the permits, the new blocks will meet all Hungarian and European safety standards, Rosatom added. The guaranteed lifespan of the two new blocks will be 60 years, it said.

Hungary to buy modular nuclear reactor in a few years

small nuclear modular reactor

Hungary could consider the purchase of one or more small modular reactors (SMR), a class of nuclear reactor that is smaller than conventional ones and can be remotely produced, in 2029-2030, the minister of energy affairs said in an interview published on business news website vg.hu on Monday.

An SMR could be procured by Hungary in 2029-2030 “at the earliest”, Csaba Lantos said. The SMR would probably be set up in the east of the country, but other locations are also being considered, he added.

He acknowledged that Hungary depends on imports for 76 percent of its energy supply, above the EU average of 71 percent, but said the government had done much to establish interconnectors between networks of neighbouring countries.

Hungary has to expand its sources of supply, but it cannot give up imports from Russia “from one day to the next”, the minister said.

Lantos said he would like to see the lifespans of all four blocks at the Paks nuclear power plant extended for another 20 years, adding that the matter hinges on technical rather than political issues.

The four existing blocks at Paks are set to end their runs between 2032 and 2037. When two additional blocks are completed at the plant, capacity of Paks will reach 4,400 megawatts.

Hungary’s solar capacity is expected to reach 10-12 gigawatts by 2030, he said.

Asked when additional wind plants could be built in Hungary, he said the matter of the scale and location of wind turbines is one of debate with the EU. “We don’t want Hungary to be turned into an industrial landscape,” he added.

He said lignite-fueled blocks at the Matra power plant, in northern Hungary, would continue to operate “as long as necessary”, until three new gas-fueled blocks are built.

Featured image: illustration (PrtSc/YouTube/NuScale Power)

Hungary to vote ‘no’ to European energy market reform

Hungary will vote against the European Commission’s proposal to reform the European electricity market, the minister of foreign affairs and trade said in Luxembourg on Monday, adding that the reform would take away the right of EU member states to keep utility prices low.

Péter Szijjártó told a press conference on the sidelines of an EU meeting on energy affairs that due to the war in Ukraine and related sanctions the situation on the EU energy market was still “rather fragile”, with natural gas prices starting to ratchet up again. “Gas prices are way above a historic average, even if they are below last year’s peak.”

He said the bloc was not fast enough in building sufficient capacities to receive liquified natural gas (LNG) to meet demands that gained impetus after the coronavirus-related restrictions were lifted in East Asia. Weather can also be a serious factor that can create uncertainty not only around next winter but as regards water consumption needs this summer.

“In this situation the government has a dual goal and responsibility. First, it must ensure that Hungary has stable energy supplies; second, it must also ensure that low utility prices are protected,” he said.

The foreign minister referred to “serious attacks directed recently at Hungary’s utility cuts by Brussels”, adding that over the rejection of the commission’s proposal put forward on Monday, Hungary had also faced “yet another attack”.

The proposal would take away from member states the right to protect their citizens against high energy prices, Szijjártó said, adding that Brussels sought to seize the right to decide when to declare an energy crisis-related emergency and allow a member state to cut utility prices in such a situation.

“This is nonsense, because one of the main lessons learnt in the recent past is precisely that the realisation of the situation and quick response can help,” he said, adding that “rather lengthy and bureaucratic decision-making in Brussels” was not a solution to problems.

Szijjártó noted that Hungary had previously won a lawsuit in the European Court of Justice in that regard, which he said also went to show that Brussels had no right to take away this national competence.

He said Hungarians paid the lowest energy bills in Europe, “and we … will uphold this situation”. “It is utterly unacceptable of Brussels to take away this right from us, so of course we will vote ‘no’ to the draft reform of the electricity market.”

Regarding the controversies around nuclear energy, Szijjártó said that while “attacks have not subsided”, a strong pro-nuclear energy coalition had been formed with the French leadership, of which Hungary was also a partner.

“European energy security and environmental protection goals are impossible to achieve without nuclear energy,” he said.

Meanwhile, Germany “has once again come up with a proposal” to impose sanctions on Russian state-owned nuclear energy company Rosatom, he said. Rosatom leads the upgrade of Hungary’s only nuclear plant, which covers half of the country’s electricity consumption, he noted. Should the proposal be formally tabled, Hungary’s government will oppose it vehemently, Szijjártó said.

Germany argues that such a sanction would serve the interests of Ukraine. “We respect the interests of Ukraine but think that EU member states’ interests should weigh more in EU decision-making than that of non-members,” he said.

Regarding gas reserves, Szijjártó said that Hungary had already stored enough gas to cover 39 percent of its needs next winter, against the EU average of 22 percent.

Szijjártó also called for the protection of critical energy infrastructure, especially of the TurkStream pipeline. He said it was “nonsense” that “everyone conspicuously seems to be avoiding investigating the terrorist attack on the NordStream pipeline a few months ago”.

He said that developing transit routes in south-east Europe was key to energy diversification.

“Since this is a physical question rather than that of political pipedreams, the European Commission has a responsibility here,” he said.

He also called for EU action against “certain EU member states and third countries which have raised transit fees by utterly unfair proportions in a way that seems coordinated,” he said. “This is not a friendly or fair gesture, or one that suggests cooperation based on mutual respect,” he said.

Meanwhile, Szijjártó had talks with Peter Dovhun, Slovakia’s minister of economy, in Luxembourg, and discussed issues around energy policy. Szijjártó said on Facebook that Hungary and Slovakia’s energy interests largely coincided.

“Unfortunately, a debate has again flared up in Brussels about whether or not to impose sanctions on the nuclear industry. Therefore we have reinforced our alliance and will not surrender to pressure. We insist that defining the energy mix of a country should stay a national competency, and we will not allow the nuclear industry to be sanctioned,” he said.

France to take over Germany’s role in Paks II control system supply

szijjártó framatome paris paks

France’s Framatome is set to take over the role of Germany’s Siemens Energy in the supply of the operational control system for the new blocks of Hungary’s Paks nuclear power plant, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in Paris on Wednesday.

The expansion of nuclear energy production is the best way to guarantee Hungary’s long-term energy security and sustain the achievements of the scheme capping household energy prices, Szijjártó said after talks with the CEO of France’s EDF electric utility company, according to a ministry statement.

Szijjártó said the European Commission’s recent approval of the modifications to the contracts of the Paks plant’s upgrade could now accelerate the expansion, adding that the Hungarian government now expected a greater French presence in the project.

Hungary had intended for the control system to be supplied by a German-French consortium, but the German government is not allowing the German company to participate, the minister said. Therefore, their role will most likely be taken over by the French, he added.

The minister noted that US engineering giant GE, which has been contracted to manufacture and supply the turbines for the new blocks, has been acquired by a French company.

“And this means that French value added, French participation and French contributions to Hungary’s nuclear industry will increase significantly,” he said.

Szijjártó said this was in line with Hungary’s interests, arguing that Budapest and Paris were in agreement on the strategic importance of protecting nuclear energy.

“Certain European political players and Brussels bureaucrats are trying to push nuclear energy out of the European energy market,” the minister said. But, he added, France had organised a coalition of 12 European countries that firmly support the use of nuclear energy.

“We don’t accept negative discrimination against nuclear energy,” he said. “Nuclear energy is indeed a clean, cheap and safe way of producing electricity.”

Szijjártó on Wednesday morning also held talks with the director general of the European Space Agency as well as leaders of Thales Alenia Space and Servier. Hungary is intensifying its cooperation with the ESA after having shortlisted the final four candidates to become the country’s next astronaut to participate in a mission on the International Space Station, he said, adding that the contract on the mission will be signed with US-based Axiom Space in September.

Government has no intention to distance itself from the Russians, Rosatom chief visited Orbán

rosatom

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán held talks with Alexey Likhachev, the head of Russia’s energy company Rosatom, in Budapest on Monday.

The talks were attended by Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó and Kirill Komarov, Rosatom’s first deputy director general.

The Rosatom delegation also held talks with Szijjarto, who said after their meeting that further preparations for the expansion of Hungary’s Paks nuclear plant would soon begin.

Szijjártó discusses Paks upgrade with Rosatom chief

Additional ground work will soon begin to prepare the site for the expansion of Hungary’s Paks nuclear power plant, Szijjártó said after talks with Alexey Likhachev, chief executive of Rosatom, on Monday.

Szijjártó welcomed the European Commission’s approval of the modifications to the contracts of the plant’s expansion which he said would make it possible to speed up the construction of the two new blocks with the project applying the strictest nuclear safety regulations, according to a foreign ministry statement.

The foreign minister noted that work to thoroughly prepare the site for ensuring a safe operation of the new blocks will begin in early July.

Szijjártó said both he and the Rosatom chief stated their commitment towards ensuring that the two new blocks should be put into operation at the beginning of the next decade.

“We have so far managed to achieve that no sanctions are in place on the nuclear energy sector, we, at the same time know exactly that sanctions do exist not only in written but in an unwritten form,” he said. “Several foreign actors are keen to either bloc or slow down the expansion project ” which Szijjártó said constituted “an attack against the sovereignty of a state”.

“We therefore ask, urge those international actors to stop slowing down or blocking the Paks project because those will on the one hand fail, and, on the other hand, we cannot accept their jeopardising the safety of our energy supplies,” the foreign minister said.

Szijjártó said with the completion of the Paks II project, Hungary’s nuclear energy capacity will go up from 2,000 MW to 4,400 MW, enough to meet 75 percent of domestic electricity needs, reducing Hungary’s dependence on international energy markets. He noted the project’s environmental aspect which would allow “cutting carbon dioxide emissions by 17 million tonnes per year”.

As we wrote a few days ago, PM Orbán receives Russian Order of Glory and Honour, details HERE.