May 22 (SeeNews) - Slovenia will be able to make a decision on the construction of a second unit at Krsko nuclear power plant (NPP) next year at the earliest, local media quoted energy minister Bojan Kumer as saying.
"We will be able to weigh whether we have enough information to make a decision on the second unit next year at the earliest," daily Delo quoted Kumer as saying on Saturday.
A feasibility study on the construction of a second unit is being prepared by state-run energy group Gen-Energija as a potential investor, as it includes estimates on the amount of the investment, the suitability of suppliers, deadlines and the price of electricity from the nuclear power plant, Kumer said.
The decision, which will likely be voted at a referendum, should be taken by 2027, but the timing depends on the conclusions of the study, he noted.
Gen-Energija is preparing an application to change the spatial plan to allow for the construction of a second unit and intends to submit it no later than June, Kumer added.
In January, Gen-Energija COO Danijel Levicar said the company aims to launch the second unit at Krsko in 2035 to compensate for the phase-out of coal in the country's energy mix.
Slovenia's infrastructure ministry issued an energy permit for the construction of a second reactor unit at Krsko in July 2021, but the decision drew fire from neighbouring Austria, whose constitution bans the use of nuclear fission in its energy supply.
Krsko NPP, located in Slovenia near the border with Croatia, generates some 40% of Slovenia's electricity output. The NPP is located around 100 kilometers from Austria and operates a Westinghouse pressurised light water reactor of 2,000 MW thermal power capacity. The operating company Nuklearna elektrarna Krsko (NEK) is co-owned by Gen-Energija and Croatian power utility Hrvatska Elektroprivreda (HEP).