Disir
Platinum Member
- Sep 30, 2011
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The European Commission wouldn't accept Hungary's long-term dependence on Russian nuclear fuel supply. That's the root cause of the row. International precedents indicate that a compromise formula can be hammered out. The questions are how fast and at what cost.
Portfolio.hu Hungarian business news portal writes that the recent European Commission decision on the expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant has been a warning to the Hungarian government but is far from being the last word on that EUR 12 billion scheme. This is a complex, ongoing story. See some aspects of this saga are discussed below, a few days after the Financial Times leak hit the fan.
On March 10 the European Commission decided to back the stance of the Euratom Supply Agency (ESA) to kill one of the contracts that are preconditions to the passage of the Paks 2 project. Said contract foresees the Russian supply of nuclear fuel. Though the Hungarian government had got official word about the decision during the week, the public hadn’t heard of it until the evening of March 12. That’s when the Financial Times, referring to three unnamed sources, disclosed the European Commission’s decision on Paks under the title “EU blocks Hungary–Russia nuclear deal.”
As from March 13, the Hungarian government has been publicly responding to the situation. Government spokesperson Zoltán Kovács, Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office János Lázár, and European Union commissioner Tibor Navracsics have denied that the project has been blocked and promise a compromise agreement with Euratom on nuclear fuel supply within weeks. Lázár has told the public that Euratom wishes to see alternative suppliers alongside the Russians. It’s possible, he said, that the Russians and others will supply fuel. Navracsics says diversifying the purchase of fuel would prompt Brussels to give its fiat. The Hungarian government is apparently giving preference to a compromise formula over taking legal action against the European Commission.
Budapesttelegraph.com - Budapest Telegraph News from Hungary
We are going to force you to pay more because we have an ongoing spat.
Portfolio.hu Hungarian business news portal writes that the recent European Commission decision on the expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant has been a warning to the Hungarian government but is far from being the last word on that EUR 12 billion scheme. This is a complex, ongoing story. See some aspects of this saga are discussed below, a few days after the Financial Times leak hit the fan.
On March 10 the European Commission decided to back the stance of the Euratom Supply Agency (ESA) to kill one of the contracts that are preconditions to the passage of the Paks 2 project. Said contract foresees the Russian supply of nuclear fuel. Though the Hungarian government had got official word about the decision during the week, the public hadn’t heard of it until the evening of March 12. That’s when the Financial Times, referring to three unnamed sources, disclosed the European Commission’s decision on Paks under the title “EU blocks Hungary–Russia nuclear deal.”
As from March 13, the Hungarian government has been publicly responding to the situation. Government spokesperson Zoltán Kovács, Minister heading the Prime Minister’s Office János Lázár, and European Union commissioner Tibor Navracsics have denied that the project has been blocked and promise a compromise agreement with Euratom on nuclear fuel supply within weeks. Lázár has told the public that Euratom wishes to see alternative suppliers alongside the Russians. It’s possible, he said, that the Russians and others will supply fuel. Navracsics says diversifying the purchase of fuel would prompt Brussels to give its fiat. The Hungarian government is apparently giving preference to a compromise formula over taking legal action against the European Commission.
Budapesttelegraph.com - Budapest Telegraph News from Hungary
We are going to force you to pay more because we have an ongoing spat.
