Atomic concern

Belarus is waiting for contractors within a month

President Alexander Lukashenko demanded that the government speed up work on the creation of the first Belarusian nuclear power plant . “I am concerned that preparations for the construction of the nuclear power plant are going slowly, at least not as much as we would like,” he said.

From the president’s words it followed that one of the main problems was finding a contractor. According to the presidential press service, the Belarusian leader “stressed that it is necessary to once again officially offer to participate in the construction of the nuclear power plant to the Franco-German company, as well as to the Japanese, Americans and Russians, if they show interest.” The President explained that “there are no more companies in the world.” Starting from June 30, for a month, any potential contractor can directly contact the Belarusian leader and other representatives of Minsk personally regarding participation in the project. “In a month we will stop accepting proposals,” the president warned.

At the end of May, Belarusian energy workers reported that they had sent proposals for participation in the construction of nuclear power plants to three companies - the Russian Atomstroyexport, the French Areva and the American-Japanese Westinghouse-Toshiba. A response was expected within a month. There was almost no doubt that companies from Russia and France would respond - representatives of these countries had previously declared their interest in the project. However, Minsk's repeated appeal to the contractors indicates that they have not yet confirmed their interest.

Deputy head of the research center of the Belarusian Institute of Privatization and Management, Irina Tochitskaya, in an interview with Vremya Novostey, noted that due to the rise in world oil and gas prices, many countries are now thinking about nuclear energy, this wave has also spread to EU countries: “However, the number of companies , which are engaged in the construction of nuclear power plants, is limited today. Perhaps contractors prefer to deal with European countries, which, from their point of view, are more understandable and solvent customers.”

The issue of the solvency of Belarus, according to the VN expert, is one of the key ones. Previously, Minsk stated that it intends to build a nuclear power plant for $4 billion. However, the state is unlikely to be able to fully bear these costs against the backdrop of rising energy prices and the need to increase investment in non-nuclear energy. Most likely, the authorities will have to look for money outside. As a rule, loans for nuclear power plants are allocated by the countries from which the contracting firm originates. “Companies are interested in receiving expensive contracts. But the client’s ability to repay the debt is calculated very clearly,” noted Ms. Tochitskaya.

Minsk says that the nuclear power plant will be a profitable project. But, according to analysts, Belarus is unlikely to be able to export electricity, since neighboring Russia and Ukraine are provided with it, and the Baltic countries intend to build their own nuclear power plants. “Even with the cheapness of nuclear energy, it is not entirely clear how the project will pay off if the station operates only for internal needs. Perhaps that is why the contractors have not yet given an answer,” Ms. Tochitskaya suggested in an interview with VN.

Olga TOMASHEVSKAYA, Minsk