Bulgaria will start negotiations with Russian nuclear group Rosatom to allow it to sell the nuclear reactor ordered by state energy group NEK for the scrapped Belene nuclear power project to a third party, after an international arbitration court ruled that NEK should pay around €550m (US$620m) to Russian nuclear group Atomstroyexport, in compensation for having cancelled Belene.
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 the Russian company Atomstroyexport was selected in 2006 to build two 1,000 MW VVER-1000 reactors. However, the project failed to attract investors and was cancelled in 2012, prompting Atomstroyexport to file a lawsuit against the Bulgarian Government and to claim €1bn in damages.
NEK had ordered reactors and other nuclear equipment that it aims to sell to fund Rosatom's compensation claim, but the Bulgarian company needs the permission from the Russian group.
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