Angra 3 consultation response deadline extended
Eletronuclear said the delay was "based on the quantity and nature of the contributions received during the public consultation. Eletronuclear assesses the participation of interested parties in the bidding process as positive and emphasises that the extension of the deadline does not impact the company's planning".
The public consultation, held with support from the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES), sought suggested improvements to the proposed parameters of services, including Engineering, Procurement and Construction. The company will now publish the results by 19 August.
Meanwhile the company is awaiting a study by BNDES into the likely finances of the completed nuclear unit, which will feed into the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the National Energy Policy Council as a decision is taken on whether to give the go-ahead, and the proposed tariff for the sale of electricity generated by Angra 3. Earlier this year a Federal Audit Court analysis suggested that "charges to consumers will be much higher if the construction of Angra 3 continues than if the project is abandoned". Eletronuclear rejected that analysis and also pointed to the wider economic and employment benefits from the nuclear generation sector.
Brazil has two reactors - Angra 1 and Angra 2 - which generate about 3% of the country’s electricity. Work on the Angra 3 project - to feature a Siemens/KWU 1405 MW pressurised water reactor - began in 1984 but was suspended two years later, before construction began. The scheme was resurrected in 2006, with first concrete in 2010. But, amid a corruption probe into government contracts, construction of the unit was halted for a second time in 2015, when it was 65% complete. It resumed again in November 2022 - at the time of the project’s revitalisation, Eletronuclear’s aim was to start operations by the end of 2026. However, work halted again in April 2023 after disputes with the municipality of the City of Angra dos Reis over agreements relating to "environmental compensation" payments and also changes relating to the granted planning permission.
