Rosen Hristov again called for the fate of the Belene NPP reactors to be decided

All the equipment at the “Belene” NPP is in good condition and is suitable for operation, stated the Acting Minister of Energy Rosen Hristov, who inspected the site and the equipment in the planned second nuclear power plant in our country.

“We have checked the conservation of the equipment located at the Belene site and the maintenance of the site itself. All work is carried out according to the plan according to the manufacturer’s instructions. In fact, all the equipment is in a condition suitable for operation and meets all standards,” added Hristov, quoted by BTA.

He is again raising the issue even though there is no regular government in place and it is not known if one will be formed within the current parliament.

According to him, a complete technical feasibility study should be done to answer all the questions – what can be built, how can it be made, with what equipment, how much will it cost, can existing equipment be used and integrated into the new system. “When we gather all the information, we will be ready to present it to the parliament for a final decision,” said Hristov.

According to him, at the moment Belene NPP has equipment worth over BGN 1 billion that is unusable. “Its maintenance in such a perfect condition costs millions and I think it is high time that Bulgaria decides how to continue with this asset, which is significant both in terms of invested funds and is strategically important for the country,” the minister also commented.

In January, it became known that the cabinet’s ideas for energy development until 2053 included the sale of the two reactors that Bulgaria had ordered for the Belene NPP and had to pay Atomstroyexport.

An unsuccessful attempt to sell the two reactors in the absence of a definite decision to build the Belene NPP was also made by the Borisov cabinet, under whose administration Bulgaria was condemned to pay for the two units and take them and which are currently stored under unknown conditions at “Belene” site.

Rosen Hristov said that a full analysis of what can be built with the existing equipment and whether there will be any dependence on Russian companies in the future will be done, so that all risks, including geopolitical ones, will be assessed.

“We are negotiating with the French company Framatome to do a full study that will give us an answer as to what can be built on the site with this equipment or what the alternative is, to analyze all the technical and economic risks and to give prescriptions as to what is the best solution,” explained the minister. According to him, this analysis will take about 10 months.

According to Hristov, it is high time to take a step towards making a final decision on what should be done with the site and the existing equipment, because currently there are costs in the order of millions of BGN per year, with no progress being made. He added that more than 30 people work at the site, who are engaged in the maintenance of the territory, security, and permanent conservation of the equipment.

Minister Rosen Hristov also commented that the fastest project that can be implemented, bearing in mind the advanced phase of negotiations and analyses, is the construction of the seventh block of the Kozloduy NPP. It can be put into operation in 8-10 years, the minister pointed out.

Source: Dnevnik (in Bulgarian)