Fico: New Nuclear Facility Project Can Be Anytime Revived

Bratislava, October 4 (TASR) – The situation concerning construction and investment in nuclear facilities has extremely changed, Prime Minister Robert Fico (Smer-SD) told a news conference in Bratislava on Tuesday within the 11th session of the European Nuclear Energy Forum.

Fico was answering the question concerning the development of the so-called New Nuclear Facility (NJZ) planned in the area of Jaslovske Bohunice (Trnava region).

“One megawatt (MW) of electricity cost between €70-80 about ten years ago, while today we find ourselves in an environment where the price of one megawatt is below €30. That’s why nowadays you won’t find anybody who would be interested in making direct investments in constructing a brand new nuclear blocks under these conditions,” stressed Fico.

According to Fico, there was a demand for building a new nuclear power facility in the area of Jaslovske Bohunice at a time when the price for one megawatt of electricity and the investment environment in general were very attractive. “We wanted to make use of Jaslovske Bohunice’s existing nuclear infrastructure in construction of the NJZ,” added Fico.

If there isn’t a suitable environment for making direct investments in this project at the moment, we need to use the time for preparation of the construction documentation. “Therefore, I welcome that the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of NJZ that was made this year was positive. This is a serious thing for a construction like this. We will monitor developments on the (energy) market so that we can revive the project anytime the investment environment becomes favourable,” said Fico.