![]() Chancellor has ever seen such a nuclear plant in person”. Kurz to visit the site, “because I am not sure if M. “I understand that he must react to the mood in Austrian society, but it is my duty to defend the interests of the Slovak Republic” he added, before inviting M. “I understand that he must carry out his domestic policies”, Peter Pellegrini said, quoted by the TASR news agency. Slovak Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini accused Austria of “declaring a holy war” against nuclear energy in Central Europe, where it is still seen as a strong guarantor of energy security and low prices.Īustria’s chancellor Sebastian Kurz “is stepping over his competencies and attempting to meddle with the sovereignty and decision-making of the Slovak Republic”, the Slovak Premier said, as quoted by Austrian public broadcaster ORF. ![]() Vienna’s continued opposition to the project did not go down well in Bratislava. Austria’s “holy war” against nuclear energy in Central Europe “Another reason for concern is that the reactors were originally built to Soviet-style designs, and then modified with Western elements”, reminds Die Deutsche Welle. ![]() Located roughly 100 kilometers from the border with Austria, the expansion project of the Mochovce nuclear plant has faced strong opposition from Vienna.Ĭiting safety concerns, Austrian officials have repeatedly asked their Slovak counterparts to drop the project, while Austrian environmental NGO’s have launched a campaign claiming that the construction has major flaws and presents a clear threat to the environment in case of failure or incident.Īt the time, Slovenske Elektrarne fired back at a critical study from Austrian environmental watchdog Global 2000, saying it “shows an absolute lack of knowledge about the complex projects” aimed at increasing the safety of Slovakia’s nuclear sites. Head of the state energy firm Slovenske Elektrarne, which operates the power plant, Branislav Strycek told Slovak lawmakers earlier this week that the opening of two new reactors should be postponed until November this year, or March 2020 at the latest, instead of the initial June 2019 launch, citing the opposition from the Austrian neighbour as the main reason.Ĭhancellor Sebastian Kurz said that the postponement was “a step in the right direction” and added that he will keep on the fight “until all our safety concerns have been answered”. Slovakia delays extension of Mochovce nuclear power plant This idea was dismissed by the coalition as a violation of EU free market rules.Bratislava, Slovakia – On Monday, Slovakia announced it would delay – once again – the long-awaited plans to expand the Mochovce nuclear energy plant after receiving complaints from Austria – a long-standing thorn in bilateral relations between the two neighbours. One opposition party tabled an amendment that would require domestic power producers to sell 90% of their output to Slovenian consumers at just above production price. While the legislation was passed without dissenting votes, some of the opposition abstained on the grounds that broader measures should be implemented. The guarantees will cover gas and electricity purchases outside the EU, with HSE’s guarantees capped at €800 million in principal and GEN Energija and Geoplin at €400 million each. The third part of the package is a guarantee scheme for state-owned electricity producers GEN Energija and HSE, and the gas distributor Geoplin. It also provides the legal basis for the government to prescribe the maximum or minimum temperature in public buildings and lighting.Ĭhanges to the gas supply act will ensure that no consumer will be left without gas in the event their supplier closes shop, according to Infrastructure Minister Bojan Kumer.Īpart from households, preschools, elementary schools and health centres, other so-called protected users will almost automatically be taken over by substitute suppliers in the event their original supplier goes belly up. The government will be able to declare a high-risk situation during which power plants and co-generation installations would be able to change their fuel, for example, switch from natural gas to diesel, without the need for a new environmental permit. In the worst-case scenario, the management and coordination of individual parts of the system would be entrusted to the national grid operator, ELES. The linchpin of the package is a law on measures to control crises in energy supply which will allow the government to order state-owned companies to secure a reliable energy supply. A package of three laws designed to ensure a stable supply of electricity and gas this winter, the latest in a long series of measures to address the energy crisis, was passed by the Slovenian parliament on Tuesday.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |