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Bulgaria will use Russian technology for unit 7 of Kozloduy nuclear plant

Bulgaria intends to use the Russian equipment provided for the Belene nuclear power project for a 7th nuclear reactor at the Kozloduy nuclear power plant. The country already paid equipment worth BGN1.3bn (€665m) for the Belene nuclear project. In October 2020, the government was considering selecting US technology for the Kozloduy-7 project, but those plans have been shelved. Westinghouse would now support Bulgaria for the construction of the Kozloduy-7 project with the existing equipment initially planned for Belene.

The tender for the Belene nuclear plant, which was due to take place in April 2020, has been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic. In December 2020, Bulgaria selected Rosatom (through Atomenoergoprom), China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) to file binding offers as strategic investors in the project. In addition, Framatome (previously Areva NP) and General Electric were invited to send offers for equipment and funding. With this decision to use Belene equipment at Kozloduy, the project is now frozen again.

The 1.9 GW Kozloduy nuclear power plant accounts for around 1/3 of Bulgaria’s power generation. It is the only nuclear power plant in Bulgaria, with two reactors operational (unit 5 and unit 6). The first four units were decommissioned in 2002 and 2006. Unit 5 was granted a new 10-year operational licence in 2017, following its renovation by a consortium of Rosatom and EDF, which extended its lifetime until 2047. In October 2019, the Nuclear Regulatory Agency of Bulgaria granted a new 10-year operational license to the unit 6 of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant. The Soviet-made reactor, which was modernised by Russia’s Rosatom, can now operate until 2051.

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