Russia Confirms Receipt Of Belene Compensation From Bulgaria

9 Dec (NucNet): Russian nuclear equipment manufacturer Atomstroyexport (ASE) today received full payment of €601m ($635m) from Bulgaria’s National Electric Company (NEK) as compensation for the cancelled Belene nuclear project, Russian state-owned nuclear corporation Rosatom said in a statement. Rosatom said it was satisfied with NEK’s decision to fulfil its obligations. In June 2016, the Geneva-based International Court of Arbitration (ICA) ordered NEK to pay €620m in compensation to Russia’s ASE for components which had already been manufactured before the cancellation of the Belene project in 2012. In October 2016, the Bulgarian government reached an agreement with Russia to settle the claim for €601m if payment was made before 25 December 2016. On 28 September 2016, Bulgaria’s parliament passed a bill authorising the government to release a loan to NEK to cover the compensation. EU regulations on state aid required Bulgaria to request approval for the loan from the European Commission. On 6 December 2016 Bulgaria’s energy ministry announced it had received that approval. Under the ICA’s ruling, Bulgaria will assume ownership of the Belene equipment, which is being stored at a manufacturing plant in Russia. A nuclear station at Belene was originally planned by Bulgaria’s communist government in the 1980s, but was stopped in the early 1990s because of environmental and financial concerns. The project was revived in 2008, but formally abandoned in 2012 because of uncertainties about its financial viability.