BUCHAREST (Romania), April 2 (SeeNews) – Romania has selected four sites suitable for the construction of a new nuclear plant in the country, Bucharest-based news agency Business Standard reported on Thursday.
The sites are located in the central counties of Brasov and Sibiu, in the western county of Arad and the northwestern Cluj, Business Standard (www.standard.ro) said.
"The most suitable location for the new nuclear plant should be between Fagaras [Brasov county] and Talmaciu [Sibiu county] on the Olt river," Business Standard quoted former head of Romania’s state nuclear agency Valica Gorea as saying.
Romania has one nuclear plant in Cernavoda, in the country's southeast, operated by state-owned company Nuclearelectrica.
Former Nuclearelectrica CEO Teodor Chirica said in November that Romania will need a second nuclear power plant with a capacity of 2,400 megawatts (MW) by 2020.
The plant in Cernavoda has two 700 MW-reactors and provides around 18% of Romania's power needs. Two new nuclear reactors with similar powers are scheduled to become operational by 2014-2015 in Cernavoda, their construction being estimated to begin in 2010-2011. Construction costs have been estimated at four billion euro ($5.3 billion) with Nuclearelectrica contributing some two billion euro.
($=0.7531 euro)