Countries of Eastern Europe intend to build at least 12 nuclear power units

The countries of Eastern Europe plan to build at least 12 nuclear power plant units (NPP), allocating about €130 billion for these purposes, Azernews reports.

"Countries from the Czech Republic to Romania are developing plans to implement the initiative, which some have called the "largest project of the century," the report says. At the same time, the first power plant can be put into operation before the end of the current decade. The agency clarifies that the governments of the countries of the region have also secured political support for the construction of new nuclear facilities against the background of the European Union's desire to achieve carbon neutrality and reduce dependence on Russian gas imports. In total, Eastern European states are said to allocate almost €130 billion for the construction of at least 12 nuclear power units.

However, the implementation of these plans is complicated by obstacles. According to some officials, who wished to remain anonymous, Eastern Europe lacks the technical expertise and financial resources to implement such large-scale projects. Given the reluctance of private investors to take on all the risks of building new nuclear power plants, the decisive factor will be EU subsidies, which, however, are distributed on a competitive basis.

Currently, only two new nuclear power plants are being built in the community - in Slovakia and Hungary, Bloomberg explains. According to forecasts of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), by 2050 the total capacity of nuclear power plants in the world will grow by at least a quarter. According to the head of Rosatom Alexey Likhachev, Russia is the leader in the number of nuclear power units under construction abroad.