Russia to build two nuclear reactors in Hungary

Reuters
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The Hungarian nuclear regulator has granted a construction license for two new reactors at the Paks nuclear power plant, which are to be built by Russia’s Rosatom under an agreement signed in 2014 between Budapest and Moscow.

Despite serious delays, the project, awarded without a call for tenders to Rosatom, has often been cited as proof of the warm ties between Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In a decision posted on its website on Thursday, the Hungarian Nuclear Energy Authority said Russia’s existing 2-gigawatt power plant in Paks could be expanded with two new reactors, pending new licenses.

Hungary aims to expand Paks with two Russian-made VVER reactors, each with a capacity of 1.2 gigawatts. Nuclear energy is not subject to EU sanctions.

The plans for the two new blocks in Paks serve Hungary’s strategic interests, Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said after a meeting in May with Rosatom’s chief executive.

The Paks plant now has four small Russian-made VVER 440 reactors with a combined capacity of about 2,000 megawatts that began operating between 1982 and 1987.