The Minister without Portfolio, responsible for the planning, construction and commissioning of the two new units of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant, called everything, that had happened in the past year since the previous hearing, a significant progress, MTI reported. He first highlighted the submission of the implementation license application on 30 June, adding that the license can be issued by the Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority (HAEA) in the autumn of 2021 at the latest. With authority and EU approval, the earthworks can start earlier, and their license is expected next spring. Work preceding the construction of the base plate can take about two years.

The minister also said that most of the invoices of the first phase so far have been paid by prepayment, and the Ministry of Finance is negotiating further prepayments with the Russian partner, was reported by MTI. János Süli considers safety to be the most important aspect of the Paks investment. According to the design requirements, the new units must not endanger their environment in the event of malfunctions or external impacts. Accordingly, the physical protection of the facility had to be ensured by developing and approving a plan for it, he said. The minister stressed that the government will build a state-of-the-art power plant.

Russian specialists have already built and are building similar, third-generation units in several countries around the world, including Finland, in addition to Russia. Besides the participation of the Russian Contractor, the Paks investment will be implemented with the participation of Hungarian, European and American suppliers, in a financially transparent manner, with the approval of Brussels, he added.