Ukraine Receives EUR 600 Million for Nuclear Safety

KYIV, Ukraine, March 13, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development will provide a EUR 300 million loan for the comprehensive program of upgrading operating Ukrainian nuclear power plants. In addition to EBRD's loan, the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) will contribute another EUR 300 million to the project, reads ebrd.com.

The comprehensive program comprises of a set of measures, which will bring Ukraine's operating nuclear reactors in compliance with international standards as well as with local regulations. The total upgrade, provisioned by the program, will cost EUR 1.4 billion and is scheduled for completion by late 2017.

"It is of the utmost importance that the nuclear units are working to the highest, internationally recognized standards, as nuclear safety is clearly an issue that transcends borders. All 15 nuclear units in Ukraine are of a similar design (VVER 1000 and VVER 440/213), which are in operation in some EU member states, and the safety level of the units can be upgraded to reach internationally accepted standards," reads the statement, released by the EBRD.

The EBRD loan comes as a result of the successful cooperation between the Bank, Euratom and Ukraine in raising safety at the Khmelnitsky (2) and Rivne (4) nuclear power plant units built between 2004 and 2009. The extended comprehensive program, partially financed by EBRD and Euratom, is to ensure that the remaining units are upgraded to the desirable level.

"It is a responsibility of an organization like ours to ensure that energy is not only delivered in an affordable way, but that it is delivered in the safest way possible. We all know that nuclear energy is the kind of energy where we cannot afford a mistake," commented EBRD Managing Director, Energy and Natural Resources Riccardo Puliti on the bank's involvement in the program in Ukraine.

The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine earlier approved Energoatom's [Ukraine's National Nuclear Energy Generating Company] involving the loan in the amount of EUR 600 million from EBRD and Euratom in order to implement the comprehensive program on nuclear safety. "We had a due diligence of Energoatom's capacity to implement the project in the right time. And we are very satisfied… And of course, we will continue monitoring," stated Riccardo Puliti.