NOVO-OGARYOVO, January 14 (RIA Novosti) – Russia will provide credit of up to $13.7 billion to Hungary to fund the construction of two new blocks at a nuclear power plant in the central European country, the head of Russia’s nuclear agency said Tuesday.
The deal was announced during a state visit to Moscow by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and was hailed by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“The construction of the new blocks will raise the energy independence of Hungary and will facilitate improvements in questions of energy security,” Putin said.
The new capacity will be added at the state-owned Paks nuclear power plant, south of the Hungarian capital Budapest. The Paks plant currently produces about 40 percent of the electricity consumed in Hungary, according to the Kremlin, Reuters news agency reported.
Sergei Kirienko, head of Russia’s nuclear agency Rosatom, said that up to $13.7 billion would be made available to Hungary for the building work, but that it was unlikely that the whole amount would be used.
Rosatom said last month that it was involved in the construction of more than 20 nuclear reactors across the world, and had a foreign-order portfolio worth over $74 billion.
