Work
29.August 2005 - 00:00
Bulgaria's accession to the European Union
In 1999, Bulgaria was obliged by the European Commission (EC), on behalf of the European Union (EU), to close four of its six nuclear power plants as a precondition for accession discussions. The EC contended that these units were ‘not economically upgradeable’. Two units have been closed in line with the agreement and the other two are due to close by 2006. Following extensive investment and independent inspection, these units now meet all safety criteria and the Council’s Atomic Questions Group reports no further monitoring is necessary. Bulgaria has now become a net exporter of electricity to all of its neighbours and has, at times, made up 100 % of the electricity shortfall in that region. If the remaining closures go ahead as demanded by the EC, the region will suffer blackouts. These closures will also result in increased greenhouse gas emissions as lignite fuelled plants partially replace them.
In the European Parliament (EP) Report on the application by Bulgaria for EU membership(G Van Orden Ref: PE 355.322, para 33), the EP has asked the Council to apply flexibility on the closure dates until new, non-emitting replacement capacity can be brought online which will not be before 2011. Given the significant changes in the energy balance and market conditions in the Balkan region since the agreement was signed and that the EC’s contention that these plants were ‘not economically upgradeable’ has been proven to be wrong, would the Commission support a review of the agreement and, in particular, the closure dates set for the next two units?
Finally, I note that the EC is to compensate Bulgaria for these unnecessary closures by over EUR 500 million. Is such a payment justified at any time and especially now as EU budgets are under such close scrutiny?
Answer given by Mr Rehn on behalf of the Commission
As the Honourable Member is aware, Bulgaria committed itself to close units 1 and 2 of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant (KNPP) before the year 2003, in the accession negotiations on the energy chapter. Honouring this commitment, these two units were shut down at the end of 2002.
Bulgaria also committed itself to close units 3 and 4 in 2006 and this is reflected in the Accession Treaty.
The commitments have been based on safety concerns as regard the design of these type of reactors (VVER 440/230) and the Commission would like to underline that the peer review expert mission (2003) conducted under the auspices of the Council, acknowledges the significant efforts made in implementing the recommendations mentioned in previous Council reports on nuclear safety, but also reconfirms the need to respect the closure commitments.
Units 5 and 6 of KNPP, which are of a different design type and whose production capacity is larger than the cumulated capacity of units 1-4, will operate, providing a substantial source of nuclear electricity.
Therefore, the Commission is convinced that Bulgaria will honour the closure commitments as stated in the Accession Treaty.
The EU has established an overall package of EUR 550 million until 2009 to help mitigate the consequences of the closure of units 1 to 4 and a Euratom loan has been granted of EUR 212 million for the modernisation of units 5 and 6 of KNPP. The total figure of EUR 550 million is supported by calculations of the independent consultants contracted by the Enlargement DG to assess the main consequences of a closure of units 1-4 of KNPP on the agreed dates. This financial package was agreed within the framework of the accession negotiations.
This package includes the modalities for implementing the further EU assistance after accession (EUR 70 million per year for the period 2007-09) reflected in the Accession Treaty.
The bulk of the assistance is channelled through the Kozloduy International Decommissioning Support Fund (KIDSF) and managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), on behalf of the Assembly of contributors to the fund.
The KIDSF is used both for decommissioning activities and for supporting projects in the energy efficiency and renewable energy sector. In this regard, and according to the current results reported by the EBRD, the projects financed have already generated energy savings equivalent to almost 270 MW and a reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of more than 1 million t/year. Therefore, these projects have contributed both to reducing the energy consumption by energy efficiency measures and to improving the environment by addressing climate change issues.
In 1999, Bulgaria was obliged by the European Commission (EC), on behalf of the European Union (EU), to close four of its six nuclear power plants as a precondition for accession discussions. The EC contended that these units were ‘not economically upgradeable’. Two units have been closed in line with the agreement and the other two are due to close by 2006. Following extensive investment and independent inspection, these units now meet all safety criteria and the Council’s Atomic Questions Group reports no further monitoring is necessary. Bulgaria has now become a net exporter of electricity to all of its neighbours and has, at times, made up 100 % of the electricity shortfall in that region. If the remaining closures go ahead as demanded by the EC, the region will suffer blackouts. These closures will also result in increased greenhouse gas emissions as lignite fuelled plants partially replace them.
In the European Parliament (EP) Report on the application by Bulgaria for EU membership(G Van Orden Ref: PE 355.322, para 33), the EP has asked the Council to apply flexibility on the closure dates until new, non-emitting replacement capacity can be brought online which will not be before 2011. Given the significant changes in the energy balance and market conditions in the Balkan region since the agreement was signed and that the EC’s contention that these plants were ‘not economically upgradeable’ has been proven to be wrong, would the Commission support a review of the agreement and, in particular, the closure dates set for the next two units?
Finally, I note that the EC is to compensate Bulgaria for these unnecessary closures by over EUR 500 million. Is such a payment justified at any time and especially now as EU budgets are under such close scrutiny?
Answer given by Mr Rehn on behalf of the Commission
As the Honourable Member is aware, Bulgaria committed itself to close units 1 and 2 of the Kozloduy nuclear power plant (KNPP) before the year 2003, in the accession negotiations on the energy chapter. Honouring this commitment, these two units were shut down at the end of 2002.
Bulgaria also committed itself to close units 3 and 4 in 2006 and this is reflected in the Accession Treaty.
The commitments have been based on safety concerns as regard the design of these type of reactors (VVER 440/230) and the Commission would like to underline that the peer review expert mission (2003) conducted under the auspices of the Council, acknowledges the significant efforts made in implementing the recommendations mentioned in previous Council reports on nuclear safety, but also reconfirms the need to respect the closure commitments.
Units 5 and 6 of KNPP, which are of a different design type and whose production capacity is larger than the cumulated capacity of units 1-4, will operate, providing a substantial source of nuclear electricity.
Therefore, the Commission is convinced that Bulgaria will honour the closure commitments as stated in the Accession Treaty.
The EU has established an overall package of EUR 550 million until 2009 to help mitigate the consequences of the closure of units 1 to 4 and a Euratom loan has been granted of EUR 212 million for the modernisation of units 5 and 6 of KNPP. The total figure of EUR 550 million is supported by calculations of the independent consultants contracted by the Enlargement DG to assess the main consequences of a closure of units 1-4 of KNPP on the agreed dates. This financial package was agreed within the framework of the accession negotiations.
This package includes the modalities for implementing the further EU assistance after accession (EUR 70 million per year for the period 2007-09) reflected in the Accession Treaty.
The bulk of the assistance is channelled through the Kozloduy International Decommissioning Support Fund (KIDSF) and managed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), on behalf of the Assembly of contributors to the fund.
The KIDSF is used both for decommissioning activities and for supporting projects in the energy efficiency and renewable energy sector. In this regard, and according to the current results reported by the EBRD, the projects financed have already generated energy savings equivalent to almost 270 MW and a reduction of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of more than 1 million t/year. Therefore, these projects have contributed both to reducing the energy consumption by energy efficiency measures and to improving the environment by addressing climate change issues.