Ukraine Raises Unprecedented EUR 550 Million for Chornobyl Projects

KYIV, Ukraine, April 19, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovych expressed gratitude to foreign leaders and government officials who came to participate at today's international donor conference and pledged more than half a billion euros for implementation of Chornobyl projects.

The Ukrainian leader, Victor Yanukovych stressed that based on Ukraine's experience of fighting the Chornobyl consequences "No country in the world is able to overcome such challenges alone - this requires consolidated efforts of the international community." This conference has been a true fundraising breakthrough compared to other similar events related to Chornobyl projects, said Yanukovych.

Francois Fillon, the Prime Minister of France, emphasized the importance of this year's Chornobyl conference, especially taking into account the latest events in Japan. He noted that the participating countries "Once again proved their readiness to provide financial aid to finalize the construction of the new Shelter and the interim storage facility for spent nuclear fuel."

The President of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso expressed hope that the collected funds will allow for the achievement of global goals, discussed at the conference. "As the European Union - we're proud of our contribution to this process," said the European Commission President.

According to Jose Manuel Barroso, taking into account the contributions of the EU and its member states and those of the European Commission, the EU provides half of the "Shelter" funds and Chernobyl nuclear safety fund. "This is a clear manifestation of our solidarity with the Ukrainian friends," said the head of the European Commission.

Yesterday, the European Commission and Ukraine signed the Agreement on financing the Programme of Action for nuclear safety, 2010 - Part II. The European Commission will allocate 110 million euro for Ukraine under the Agreement.

The EU has been the largest international donor of Chornobyl related projects so far contributing more than 470 million euros. The US has donated about 34,5 million dollars.

The international donor conference is aimed at raising funds for Chornobyl recovery projects. The money is sought to complete construction of a long-term sarcophagus to cover the Chornobyl fourth reactor that exploded April 26, 1986, and to build the interim storage facility to keep radioactive waste and spent nuclear fuel from the plant's other three decommissioned reactors.