SOFIA (Bulgaria), July 15 (SeeNews) - Russia's Atomstroyexport said on Tuesday it has got the green light from Bulgaria's Construction Ministry to launch the construction of the Belene nuclear power plant.
The ministry has issued the construction permit to Bulgarian power grid operator NEK and NEK transferred it to Atomstroyexport on July 10, the Russian company said in a statement.
"This is an important step in the implementation of the Belene project, opening the way for a new cycle of works at the site of the plant," it said.
NEK will own 51% of the company that will build and operate the power plant. German utility company RWE and Belgium's Electrabel, owned by France's Suez, are vying for the remaining 49% stake. Bulgaria is expected to select the strategic investor in the project later this month.
NEK has contracted state-owned Atomstroyexport, along with France's Areva and Germany's Siemens, to build the 2,000-megawatt Belene plant in a deal worth 3.99 billion euro ($6.38 billion). French bank BNP Paribas will arrange funding for the project.
Construction is scheduled to start in early 2009. The first generating unit is to be put into operation by the end of 2013, and the second one in the middle of 2014.
Earlier on Tuesday, Bulgarian company Energoremont Holding said it has signed a deal with Atomstroyexport to decommission the existing equipment from the site of the future power plant.
Bulgaria hopes the Belene plant will help it regain its rosle as a key power exporter in southeast Europe which it lost after closing down two reactors of 440-MW each at its sole Kozloduy nuclear power plant at the end of 2006 to address nuclear safety concerns of the European Union, which it joined the following year. Kozloduy currently operates two reactors of 1,000 MW each.
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