Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said on Friday that an American company had beaten its French and South Korean competitors in obtaining a contract to build Poland’s first nuclear power plant.
Westinghouse Electric has secured a multi-billion-euro deal as Poland seeks to secure its energy supply independent of Russian gas.
“We assure that our nuclear power project will use reliable and safe technology [Westinghouse]Morawiecki wrote on Twitter.
Washington celebrates the announcement
US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm welcomed the decision, describing it as a “major step in strengthening our relationship with Poland for generations to come.”
Granholm also said, “I think it sends a clear message to Russia that NATO stands together to diversify our energy supplies…and to resist Russia’s energy armament.”
Westinghouse has outpaced France’s EDF and South Korea’s state-run South Korean Hydro and Nuclear Power Corporation (KHNP).
“This is a huge deal because it’s not just about a commercial energy project, it’s about how we’re going to define … interconnected security for decades to come,” a senior US government official told reporters.
Poland’s long-range nuclear plans
Warsaw has been looking to develop its civilian nuclear capabilities for years, but Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and subsequent standoff with NATO, of which Poland is a member, put it into action.
Poland has one of the most carbon-intensive energy networks thanks to its extensive use of coal.
But it hopes to meet between 25% and 36% of its energy needs with as many as six nuclear reactors it plans to build by 2040.
Warsaw wants its first nuclear power plant to be operational by 2033, and has chosen the village of Chuchio near the Baltic Sea coast for the site.
The European Union recently classified nuclear power – as well as energy from burning natural gas – as “green” despite intense pressure from countries such as Germany and Austria.
Ab / Wed (AFP, Reuters)
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