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What goes in Poland on 30th of March.
SMR alliance calls on EC to act
Energy ministers from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Croatia, Finland, France, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia have asked the European Commission to support small reactor technology that could replace fossil fuel power plants and complement large nuclear and renewable power plants.
“SMR could also be a response to the need to develop new cogeneration technologies in urban areas, desalination of seawater or carbon-free hydrogen production,” the ministers wrote to the EC.
“Nuclear energy will contribute to the decarbonization of the energy mix and the achievement of ambitious climate goals and the important goal of maintaining economic competitiveness,” the letter said.
The authors of the letter believe that Europe must not linger behind other international players that are investing in SMRs, and should reap the benefits it offers when it comes to development, commercialization and construction of SMRs. They remind that nuclear energy has been included in the EU taxonomy, which means it can count on funding. “SMRs will attract new customers and investors from the energy-intensive industry,” the document promised.
The ministers also referred to the declaration by the European Commission on its intention to convene a conference in Brussels on small nuclear reactors.
Polish companies are also interested in SMRs. PKN Orlen is to present a plan to build several reactors of this type using GE Hitachi’s BWRX-300 technology in cooperation with Synthos. KGHM is talking about several locations in Lower Silesia in VOYGR technology from NuScale.
Wojciech Jakóbik
Marshal of the Sejm: latest EU diesel regulation is absurd
On Tuesday, the Council of the European Union adopted a regulation on internal combustion cars. It adds more stringent CO2 emission standards for cars and vans. “We have to fight so that the EU Council regulation on internal combustion cars does not come into force, because it is absurd, ” Speaker of the Sejm Elżbieta Witek told Polsat News.
The regulation aims for a 100 percent reduction in carbon emissions for new vehicles after 2035. This means a ban on the registration of new cars with internal combustion engines from 2035. According to the Polish Press Agency, Poland was the only country to vote against the new rules with Bugaria, Romania and Italy abstaining.
“No one predicted the pandemic or war in Ukraine in 2019. So, it is a distant time and we have to fight so that this decision does not come into force, because it is absurd,” the Speaker of the Sejm said.
The new EU rules set the following targets: a 55 percent reduction in CO2 for new passenger cars and 50 percent for new vans between 2030 and 2034 compared to 2021 levels.
Consortium for the construction of a nuclear power plant in Poland to be established in the near future
Polish Nuclear Power Plants (PEJ), Bechtel and WEC are in talks to sign a memorandum of understanding on a cooperation model “in the near future”. “During the talks, the parties discussed a long-term vision of cooperation, mutual expectations and responsibility sharing in the project and the model of its implementation, which will ensure its most effective fulfilment. In the near future it is planned to sign a Memorandum of Understanding between PEJ, Westinghouse and Bechtel, which will allow to formalize the chosen model of cooperation in the form of a consortium,” PEJ said in a press release. “Such a model of cooperation, preferred by the Polish Nuclear Power Plants from the beginning, will find its application already at the stage of the nearest agreement, planned later this year, i.e. contract for engineering services, covering the first stage of work on a detailed technical design of the power plant in Pomerania. The contract will be the first commercial agreement to directly involve Bechtel, which since 2017 has been building together with Westinghouse two units of the Vogtle plant in the state of Georgia.
“The signing of the agreement with Bechtel-Westinghouse will allow us to use the unique competencies and experience gained during the construction of two AP 1000 reactors in the USA. The meetings were a continuation of the bridge agreement concluded in February this year by PEJ and Westinghouse for the power plant in Pomerania and talks conducted at the level of the governments of Poland and the United States,” reports PEJ.
The Polish Nuclear Energy Program provides for the construction of the first reactor in 2033 and 6-9 GW in 2043. The first location is Lubiatowo-Kopalino in Pomerania. The second is to be chosen from among the preferred locations this year.
Polish Nuclear Power Plants / Wojciech Jakóbik
