MOSCOW, September 23. /TASS/. The implementation of the Paks II Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) in Hungary will continue under any scenario, Rosatom State Nuclear Energy Corporation CEO Alexey Likhachev said in an interview with the Rossiya-24 TV channel.

"A lot of arrows are being shot at the Hungarian authorities and the very project from Brussels, Washington and London but this is a situation where the caravan will go on under any scenario," he pointed out.

The Rosatom chief slammed the rumors that Hungary planned to abandon the use of Russian nuclear fuel. "Why abandon [Russian fuel]? <...> It’s effective and its price is very attractive," Likhachev noted.

The Paks NPP, which was built with Soviet technology and uses Russian nuclear fuel, provides half of all electricity generated in Hungary and one-third of power consumed in the country. At present, four power units with VVER-440 reactors are operational at the station, located about 100 kilometers south of Budapest on the banks of the Danube River. Construction of the NPP‘s second-stage facilities is currently underway, including the fifth and sixth power units, according to the design by Russian state nuclear power corporation Rosatom. Moscow has confirmed its readiness to finance this project, which is estimated at 12.5 bln euros and which from its inception was supposed to be 80% implemented with financing from a Russian loan. According to estimates, after the two new VVER-1200 nuclear reactors are commissioned, the plant's capacity will increase from the current 2,000 megawatts to 4,400 megawatts.