The building of Slovakia's
Mochovce 3 and 4 nuclear reactors is the longest running nuclear construction project
anywhere in Europe. The reactors were designed
by the Soviet Union back in the 1970s. Construction
began back in 1987 but in 1992, soon
after the collapse of the communist regime, it was suspended. Economic studies
in 2000 showed the project to be a financial disaster.
In April 2006 Italian utility ENEL bought
66% of the shares in the Slovak energy utility Slovenské
elektrárne (SE) during privatisation. In 2008 SE declared its intention
to finally complete Mochovce 3 and 4 supported by the country's pro-nuclear
government. Construction work on completion of the units was officially launched on November 3, 2008. The units are due to be finished by 2012 and 2013 respectively. The third unit should be connected to the power grid in autumn 2012 and the fourth unit eight months later, in 2013. The units will have an installed capacity of 880 megawatts.
Although operating since the mid 1980s in
the Czech Republic,
Slovakia and Hungary, four of the same model of reactor as Mochovce
3 and 4 under construction in East
Germany were cancelled in 1990 after the
German re-unification because the reactors did not meet basic safety standards.
Russia is
the only supplier of nuclear fuel for this type of reactor which makes a
mockery of the idea that nuclear power provides energy security. An estimated 22 tonnes of
spent nuclear fuel is generated by each reactor every year.
The investment
required to build Mochovce 3 and 4 is expected to reach 2.775 billion euros. This
will devour a massive 77% of SE's investment for new electricity generation
2007 to 2013. Due to the high financial risks for
investors, the Slovak government provides generous state aid that is very likely
illegal under EU legislation.
brief history
In July 2008, the European Commission issued a conditioned opinion on Slovakia's application to build new reactors at Mochovce, provoking indignant reactions from European Parliament MPs and Greenpeace.
The opinion recommends, but does not oblige, the project proponent to
ensure "an equivalent level of protection as a full containment" and to
perform a thorough analysis of the measures needed in an aircraft crash
scenario.
On 25 August 2008 Slovak power firm Slovenske Elektrarne (SE) launched a tender to find a builder to finish blocks 3 and 4 of Mochovce NPP. The deadline for final bids is 8 December 2008; construction works on units 3&4 are expected to start on 1 April 2009 and finish by the end of June 2011 (Reuters, 25 August 2008). The tender was won by a consortium with Czech / Russian nuclear engineer Skoda JS and Slovak VUJE.
On 3 November, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fice officially started construction of the Mochvoce 3,4 power station. Because of the fact that there is no final construction permit as of today, this action rather served as PR exercise.
After heavy pressure from Greenpeace, Slovak NGOs, the Government of Austria and the European Commision, Slovak authorities decided in Summer 2008 that the Mochovce 3,4 project would need a full Environmental Impact Assessment. In early 2009, SE / ENEL started the EIA procedure. The first report was issued in July 2009, when a public participation period started. Public hearings were organised in Bratislava, Vienna (Austria) and Ezstergom (Hungary). The Slovak Ministry of Environment is expected to approve the final EIA report in February 2010.
ENEL issued in the second half of 2010 bonds to finance its investment programmes. It is believed that also the Mochovce 3,4 project will have to be covered by those bonds.
what must happen
A nuclear power plant that is scheduled to start operation in 2013-2014 and run for decades must be built in accordance with the best available safety standards. Using a design and technology that are already almost 40 years old by definition fails to deliver a comfortable level of nuclear security. The need for this additional energy producing capacity should be critically reviewed and assessed. Before turning to the nuclear energy option, which carries a high-risk long-term potential for causing serious health hazards and environmental disasters, the Slovak government should look for the opportunities in improving energy efficiency and increasing renewable energy generation capacity.
Serious concerns have been raised about the
legitimacy of Mochovce 3 and 4's approval, safety issues and poor economics.
The project is supposed to be finished on the basis of a permit issued by
communist decision makers in 1986, with no public participation or even a
proper environmental impact assessment process taking place.
environment
Low Nuclear Safety Units 3 & 4 of Mochovce, by virtue of
their design which dates back to the 1970s, qualify among the most
outdated NPP projects in Europe at present. The outdated Soviet
technologies on which it relies are missing crucial safety systems
according to modern standards. The advanced stage of construction
allows only limited modifications and improvements ('retrofitting') to
the nuclear safety of the plant.
While current reactor designs
feature double containment structures (robust walls of concrete and
steel against leakage of radioactivity in case of heavy accidents, and
for protection of the reactor against external events such as an
airplane crash), Mochovce 3&4 has none. In addition, vulnerability
to seismic activity is a weakness in the safety design of VVER 440/213
units. It is not clear whether Mochovce 3 and 4 complies with the
latest seismic design standards of the International Atomic Energy
Agency (IAEA).
Preventing climate protection Slovakia is a classical example where nuclear power is preventing the development of clean renewable energy solutions and is a barrier to energy efficiency measures. The amount of nuclear generated base-load in the Slovak electricity grid is so high, that proposed investments in wind energy projects by the utility ENEL had to be canceled.
Because of the need to sell the overload of capacity from its nuclear power stations, Slovakia has only marginally invested in energy efficiency measures in the electricity sector.
human rights
Since contamination ensuing from any accident
would affect neighbouring countries, the people of Hungary
and Austria
are included in any public consultation. Questions asked at public forums held in
Bratislava and Vienna remained unanswered. However, these
meetings have revealed that the problem of final storage of high-level
radioactive waste remains unsolved, while the commissioning of storage
facilities for low and medium-level radioactive waste is being constantly
postponed.
gender aspects
No attention for gender effects in EIA The effects of radiation on vulnerable groups, especially pregnant women and small children, was not taken into account in the Environmental Impact Assessment. Radiation effects were only indicated in general terms.
other issues
Nuclear risk export In a plebiscite in 1987 Italy decided to close down all of its nuclear reactors due to safety concerns. As the Italian government has a 30% stake in ENEL, the utility company's engagement with the Mochovce 3&4 project is a clear example of nuclear risk export.
In May 2010, Slovenské Elektrárne, (SE) received the final statement of approval from the Environment Ministry for the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for operation of the third and fourth units of the Mochovce nuclear power plant. This was the last step in the EIA process initiated at the end of 2008. The statement released by the
Environment Ministry ends the EIA process and is one of the key documents necessary for the
Nuclear Supervision Office (UJD) to issue a permit to launch the operation of the third and
fourth units after their completion in 2012 and 2013.
In October 2007 ENEL/Slovenské elektrárne (SE) announced the
conclusion of a record corporate 7-year credit facility, totalling Euro
800 million from a consortium of international private banks, including
ING, Calyon, Mizuho, Intesa San Paolo and KBC/CSOB (Mandated Lead
Arrangers), Slovenská sporitelna (Lead Arranger), Komercní banka Praha,
Komercná banka Bratislava and Dexia (Junior Arrangers).
In October 2007, a consortium of banks sigend a contract with Slovenské Elektrárne for a corporate loan of 800 Million Euro for SE's investments in Slovakia. 85% of SE's investment portfolio exists of the Mochovce 3,4 nuclear power plant. The remaining 15% is smaller than 800 Million Euro. It is therefore clear that this corporate loan was at least partly meant for financing this project.
In January 2008, NGO campaigning scored an important success: the Dutch bank ING decided to withdraw from financing the commissioning of Mochovce NPP units 3 & 4, and to invest only in SE's other activities, such as energy efficiency improvement measures.
In April 2008 Erste bank followed suit by officially distancing itself from Mochovce NPP. The new agreement reached with SE is that the loan provided by the consortium of banks would not be used in any way for financing nuclear activities.
In Summer 2009, ENEL secured a 6,5 Billion bond issue in Europe and in September 2009 a 3,5 Billion Euro bond in the USA (lead banks Citi and JP Morgan. It is believed that it is financing the Mochovce 3,4 construction partly from these bonds.
In 1993 the EBRD was approached by the Slovak government to help with the financing of units 1 and 2. EBRD commenced a comprehensive environmental assessment and least-cost study process. However, in 1995 the Slovak government decided to discontinue negotiations with the EBRD, citing as reasons the high cost of the loan and the condition imposed by EBRD to close down Slovakia's other NPP, Bohunice.
This brochure describes the Mochovce project in strong greenwash terms. The lack of secondary containment is washed over by two pages under the title "containment", that does not even mention this basic omission, but intends to give the impression that Mochovce has an up to date protection.
Action on Mochovce in front of UniCredit Jan 11, 2012
0 pictures
videos
Enel nuclear power plants
Mar 03, 2010 - Promotion video of Enel about two nuclear reactors in Slovakia: Bohunice and Mochovce
The ghosts of soviet nuclear - The case of Mochovce
Nov 12, 2009 - A film on the investment of Italian electricity firm Enel in Slovakia. The film, which was first shown at the Green conference "World energy solutions: Switch to green power" in Rome, points out how unsafe, uneconomical, potentially illegal, undemocratic and unsustainable the Enel projects at units 3 and 4 of the nuclear reactor in Mochovce are.
Nuclear Fallout - Slovakia
Nov 12, 2009 - The Austrian/Slovakian border has become the environmental frontline where East meets West in a fight for green priorities.
Still suffering from the aftermath of Chernobyl, Austrians are not prepared to put-up with a new nuclear power plant in neighbouring Slovakia. But for the Slovak's, the Mochovce nuclear reactor is their ticket to a nation abundant in cheap electricity.
