Bulgaria to invite Framatome, others to invest in Belene nuclear project

CNNC International

07/11/2018 13:40

* Also sending invites to Rosatom, China's CNNC
    * Project was revived in June after 6-year hiatus
    * 2000-MW plant estimated to cost at least 10 bln eur 

    SOFIA, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Bulgaria will seek initial
expressions of interest from four foreign firms to invest in a
revived project to build a nuclear power plant on the Danube,
its energy minister said on Wednesday.
    Invitations to become strategic investors in the 10 billion
euro-plus ($11.3 billion) scheme will go out to China's CNNC
 2302.HK , France's Framatome - a unit of EDF  EDF.PA  - and two
state-run firms, Russia's Rosatom and Korea Hydro & Nuclear
Power Co (KHNP), Temenuzhka Petkova told reporters.
    Sofia cancelled the 2,000-megawatt Belene project in 2012
after failing to find investors and facing pressure from
Washington and Brussels to limit its energy dependence on
Russia, which was under contract to build the plant. 
    In June, parliament ordered the government to revive it, and
on Wednesday Petkova said an investment plan had been drafted
that would take about a year to implement.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL5N1T92I3
    Bulgaria has been sitting on unused nuclear equipment since
paying Rosatom more than 620 million euros ($712 million) to
scrap the project six years ago.
    Petkova said Bulgaria would not commit more public funds to
Belene, or extend state or corporate guarantees or offer
investors power supply contracts at preferential rates.
    Under the plan, which is pending approval by lawmakers, the
energy ministry will shortlist eligible bidders and agree a
shareholder structure.
    "The procedure is due to go through nine stages, the first
being an invitation to potential investors," Petkova said. 
    "If all goes well, in one year we (will)... start to work on
the financing and the structuring." 
    Petkova said large electricity consumers would also be
eligible to bid for minority stakes or electricity purchase
contracts.
    Critics of the project, first launched in 1981, allege it
has been a vehicle for corruption for decades and say the
investment does not justify the benefits.
    ($1 = 0.8706 euros)

 (Reporting by Angel Krasimirov and Tsvetelia Tsolova; editing
by John Stonestreet)
 ((angel.krasimirov@thomsonreuters.com; +359 888 695 510))