Russian nuclear group Rosatom has received €620m from Bulgaria as compensation for having cancelled the Belene nuclear project in Bulgaria and has announced that it would not seek interests worth €24m, settling the deal.
The construction of the Belene power plant started in 1987 but was stopped in 1991 under the pressure of ecological movements and neighbouring countries. The project was revived in 2002 and Atomstroyexport was selected in 2006 to build two 1,000 MW VVER-1000 reactors. However, the €10bn project failed to attract investors and was cancelled in 2012 due to financial constraints combined with American and European concerns over its energy dependence on Russia, prompting Atomstroyexport to file a lawsuit against the Bulgarian Government and to claim €1bn in damages. In June 2016, an international arbitration court ruled that Bulgaria should pay compensation for nuclear equipment it ordered from the Russian company before cancelling the project.
Bulgaria is now discussing reviving the project with the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC).
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