The European Commission, one of the European Union’s governing bodies, has approved a scheme to grant Ukraine financial assistance to complete the construction of two nuclear reactors at the Rivne and Khmelnytsky nuclear power plants in order to make up for the nuclear energy generation drop following the closure of the Chornobyl Nuclear Power Plant (CNPP) in the coming December.
The commission noted that loans intended for the construction of these reactors are part of the efforts Brussels is making to improve nuclear safety in Eastern Europe and former Soviet states. However, the commission’s plans triggered negative response from some European Union member states, which Kyiv could and still can see on a number of occasions — Germany, Sweden, and Austria, which are trying to cut their own output of nuclear energy, have expressed concern over the reactor-related scheme which will cost the EU about $1.5 billion. The commission itself is so far trying to put these countries on the right track, reminding them that in 1995 the G7 countries and the then European Community undertook to offer Ukraine financial support to complete the construction of two new reactors. The Ottawa conference, at which a memorandum to this effect was signed in December 1995, stressed it was not a question of grants, and Ukraine will have, sooner or later, to return the money. A special task force analyzed what was preferable, to complete the construction of the new nuclear reactors or to seek the alternative sources of energy. The nod was finally given to the construction of the reactors. Ukraine is fulfilling its obligations: the last CNPP reactor is scheduled to be shut down on December 15. According to the Ukrainian leadership, the bulk of reactor construction operations has already been done. What is needed is some of the support promised by the G7 and the EU which seems in no hurry to fulfill their own obligations.
The European Commission still lacks the support of a number EU national governments, nor has the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has yet to say its word. Meanwhile, it this from this bank that Kyiv is supposed to get the funds both for CNPP closure (grants) and the final construction of reactors (commercial loans).
