The completion of Dukovan received a stamp from the European Commission. The Czech model will influence the European approach to the core

The Commission opened an investigation into the planned aid in June 2022 to investigate whether the aid complies with European Union rules. “The task of the commission is to ensure that the proposed state aid is targeted, proportionate and without excessive impacts on the EU energy market. During our investigation, the Czech Republic modified the original measure and submitted substantial commitments. This allowed us to approve the aid,” EC Vice-President Margrethe Vestagerová, who is in charge of economic competition, said in Tuesday’s report.

The state will provide financial assistance for the project, while also guaranteeing the stability of the power plant’s income through a power purchase agreement, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MPO) said. According to the ministry, the state also wants to use the EC’s decision as a basis for determining the conditions of support for other intended reactors. The permit applies only to the construction of one block. However, for any additional blocks, it should be easier to get them.

The decision on Dukovany will affect the European energy industry

Prime Minister Petr Fiala reminded that the permit from the EC will enable the entire project to be carried out. The Prime Minister reminded that the construction of the new reactor will be the largest investment of the Czech Republic in modern history. “Nuclear now provides more than a third of consumption in our country, and in the future it should even be half. The development of the core strengthens our energy security, self-sufficiency and also the competitiveness of our companies. Only with good use of the core and renewable resources will we be able to ensure reasonable energy prices for citizens and entrepreneurs,” Fiala said in a press statement.

According to the Minister of Industry and Trade Jozef Síkela, the decision is also important for the development of nuclear energy throughout Europe. “This is the first decision that takes into account the updating of the design of the European electricity market, and it can therefore be expected that other nuclear projects will also be based on our model when setting public support,” Síkela described.

On the same day that the European Commission granted permission for public financial support for the construction of a new nuclear unit in Dukovany, ČEZ received an offer from the French EDF, whose representatives brought the documents to the headquarters of the Czech energy giant. Officials from Korea’s KHNP submitted their bid on Monday. The details of the offers will not be public for some time, but CEZ will now analyze them. The winner of the tender and how many nuclear units will be built in the Czech Republic in the future should be decided by the summer. The first of them should be built in 2036.

The largest investment in the modern history of the Czech Republic

At the end of January this year, the government invited EDF and KHNP to submit binding bids for the construction of more reactors. It made the decision after analyzing the first offers for the construction of one reactor in Dukovany, which also included non-binding options for other units. According to Prime Minister Petr Fiala (ODS), the non-binding offers of bidders for the construction of several reactors were up to 25 percent more favorable than the construction of only one unit. He did not specify the offered prices. On the other hand, the North American company Westinghouse dropped out of the trio of applicants for the nuclear tender, which, according to the cabinet, did not meet the conditions of the original tender.

“We will now evaluate the bids and, according to the contract with the state, we will submit an evaluation report to the Ministry of Industry and Trade, i.e. the government of the Czech Republic for final approval,” said Tomáš Pleskač, a member of the board of directors and director of the new energy division of ČEZ. ČEZ anticipates that contracts with the winner will be finalized during this year and ready for signing by the end of March next year.

Bidders submitted their bids electronically, using special encryption and a unique secure storage.

The new reactor project should be the largest Czech investment in modern history, according to earlier statements by the government and ČEZ, one new reactor should cost about CZK 160 billion in 2020 prices. Government representatives refused to comment on the prices offered in the initial bids. Some economists estimated in January that the construction of four reactors could cost up to two trillion crowns.

The Czech Republic currently has six nuclear units in two power plants. Two units, each with a capacity of approximately 1,125 megawatts (MW), are located in Temelín in South Bohemia. Four smaller blocks with an output of 510 MW are located in Dukovany in the Třebíč region. In addition to new classic reactors, ČEZ is also preparing the construction of small modular reactors. The first of them should be created in Temelín.