Poland starts environmental survey for first reactors

PGE EJ1 - the subsidiary of Polish state-owned energy group Polska Grupa Energetyczna set up to build and run Poland's first nuclear power plant - has announced the start of "localisation and environmental studies" in Choczewo, Krokowa and Gniewino, which are in Pomerania Province. The company said yesterday the work had started last month specifically in Lubiatowo-Kopalino and Żarnowiec.

The research is being conducted by ELBIS, a subsidiary of PGE Capital Group, and is scheduled for completion in the first half of 2020, PGE EJ1 said. The work is being carried out in a transparent manner, follows Polish law and international guidelines, and is in collaboration with environmental supervisory institutions, it said.

Nuclear power could play a significant role in Poland's energy supply, enabling the country to boost its electricity generation capacity from clean energy sources while strengthening its energy security, the International Energy Agency said in January.

Poland's nuclear power program, which was approved in 2014, foresees two nuclear power plants with 6000 MWe of capacity, with the first one commissioned in 2022. The IEA said, however, that the timeline set out in this previously approved program, with a final investment decision this year and the first unit operational in 2024, "is no longer attainable", and a revised schedule is expected soon.

PGE EJ1 said yesterday: "Decisions on further implementation of the proposed project will be made in consultation with the Ministry of Energy and are expected to be taken by the end of this year at the latest."

Researched and written
by World Nuclear News