Romania's govt to invest 17 mln euro in high-power optics centre

The government intends to attract both academic and industrial collaborators for the project, Cseke Attila, the minister for development, public works and administration, said during a press briefing which followed a government's meeting on Wednesday.

The Horia Hulubei Institute in Magurele operates a high-powered laser system which can produce two beams with a power of up to 10 PW. The optics centre will produce and recondition the mirrors which the laser system needs in order to operate.

Out of the estimated 17 million euro investment, 12.5 million euro will be used for the acquisition of the relevant equipment and technology, the briefing further shows.

The government also said it has initiated talks with Japanese collaborators from the University of Osaka and industrial mirror manufacturer Okamoto Optics for the implementation of the project.

The Horia Hulubei laser system was developed by French engineering and technology company Thales and finished in 2017. It is located in the city of Magurele, near capital Bucharest.

($=1.0192 euro)