Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-02-05-Speech-2-184"
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"en.20020205.10.2-184"2
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".
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the Commission is unable to confirm the information according to which the Bulgarian government has announced its intention not to abide by the agreements entered into in respect of the decommissioning of the Kozloduy nuclear power station, nor can we attribute such a statement to the Bulgarian Energy Minister, Mr Kovatchiev. Differing opinions have in fact been expressed in political circles in Bulgaria during the current public debate on the closure of the Kozloduy nuclear power station – specifically of its units 1 to 4.
Information available to the Commission indicates that, in a statement on 10 January 2002 on the early decommissioning of the four reactor blocks at Kozloduy, the Bulgarian Energy Minister mentioned 2008 or 2010 as possible dates for the closure of Blocks 3 and 4. The Bulgarian Energy Minister's statement did not refer to Blocks 1 and 2.
The situation is that, in the agreement I reached with the Bulgarian government in 1999, we agreed on the decommissioning of Blocks 1 and 2 by 2002, that is this year, and that we would have discussions with the Bulgarian government on the decommissioning of Blocks 3 and 4 in connection with the revision of that country's energy strategy and that a decision on this would be reached before the date originally envisaged. The Commission made it clear that it understood this to mean that 3 and 4 would be decommissioned by 2006 at the latest. I must, though, say quite clearly that Bulgaria has not yet come to a formal decision on this matter. This means that we cannot, of course, complete the energy chapter of negotiations with Bulgaria as long as we do not have a definite decommissioning date set down for Blocks 3 and 4.
The agreement I reached with the Bulgarian government at that time constitutes part of the European Union's common negotiating position in the energy chapter with regard to Kozloduy. It is clear, therefore, that this chapter cannot be completed without compliance with the content of this agreement. The matter is clear to that extent, and, on the Commission's behalf, I now repeat that the decommissioning of Blocks 1 to 4 of the nuclear power station at Kozloduy in accordance with the agreement entered into is an absolutely indispensable requirement for the conclusion of accession negotiations with the Republic of Bulgaria.
Work has begun on the decommissioning of Blocks 1 and 2 and the right administrative and technical conditions are in place. As an international fund stands ready to finance these operations, I am working on the assumption that everything will go according to plan. I do not share the concern expressed by some that the decommissioning of reactor Blocks 1 to 4 will result in major economic difficulties, particularly as regards competitiveness. The Commission has calculated that Bulgaria has considerable over-capacity in energy production, and, as a new nuclear power station of modern design is being built, any loss to Bulgaria will be compensated for, and any problems are, in our view, perfectly capable of being surmounted.
To sum up, we have not the least indication that Bulgaria will pull out of the commitment it has made. I would also like to expressly underline that the Bulgarian Prime Minister, at my most recent meeting with him, quite expressly confirmed to me that his government stands by the undertaking given by its predecessor."@en1
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