Bulgaria Offers Westinghouse 49% Stake in Planned NPP Unit

Bulgaria's energy minister said the government is proposing to US-based Westinghouse, controlled by Japan's Toshiba Group, to acquire a 49% stake in a planned 1,000 MW unit at the country's sole nuclear power plant (NPP) Kozloduy, local media reported on Thursday.

The Bulgarian government signed last year with Westinghouse a shareholder agreement for the construction of the new Kozloduy unit, under which the US company would provide all of the plant's equipment, design, engineering and fuel and will issue a competitive tender for the construction of the unit.

By becoming a strategic investor the project, Westinghouse will also ensure 49% of the financing needed for the NPP unit's construction, online portal Investor.bg quoted Temenuzhka Petkova as saying.

Petkova also said that the exclusivity of the agreement signed with Westinghouse is due to expire on March 31. However, negotiations with the US company regarding the project will continue after that, as well.

The Kozloduy NPP was left with two operational reactors of 1,000 MW each after the country closed down four units of 440 MW each to address nuclear safety concerns expressed by the European Union prior to Bulgaria's accession to the bloc in 2007. Bulgaria plans extension of the lifespan of the 1,000 MW units 5 and 6 of the Kozloduy NPP.

In April 2012, the government in Sofia decided to add another 1,000 MW unit to the plant, a project that is currently taking shape. US-based Westinghouse, controlled by Japan's Toshiba Group, said in August last year a shareholder agreement following consultations with all Bulgarian political parties for the construction of a new unit at the NPP. The AP1000 reactor is projected to be online by 2023.

Source: SeeNews