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Hungary hopes US will extend exemption from sanctions for Paks-2 NPP project — Szijjarto

Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto noted that US President Donald Trump suspended sanctions imposed by the Joe Biden administration that prevented the construction of two new NPP units in Paks

BUDAPEST, November 7. /TASS/. Hungary hopes that the US will extend sanctions relief for the construction of the Paks-2 nuclear power plant (NPP) designed by Rosatom, Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Peter Szijjarto said as he is accompanying Prime Minister Viktor Orban on his visit to Washington.

In June, US President Donald Trump suspended sanctions imposed by the Joe Biden administration that prevented the construction of two new NPP units in Paks, the minister noted. "This waiver is valid until December. I hope that on Friday we will be able to reach an agreement on the US government extending the sanctions waiver for the Paks NPP expansion project. We really hope so because if they've already granted the waiver once, why not grant it again," Szijjarto said. His statement was reported by the M1 TV channel.

In November 2024, the United States imposed sanctions against Gazprombank, which handled payments between Hungary and Russia for oil and gas supplies, as well as for the construction of the second stage of Paks NPP. Moscow and Budapest had to look for alternative payment options. Additionally, on January 10, the US announced a broad package of sanctions targeting the Russian oil and gas sector, as well as the management of Rosatom, including the state corporation’s CEO Alexey Likhachev.

A solution for oil and gas was found, but funding for the Paks NPP construction remained elusive. As a result, construction of two new power units in Paks was stalled in the first half of this year. Hungary has asked the Trump administration to lift sanctions against Gazprombank, which acts as a guarantor of the Paks-2 project financing. In June, Washington made a positive decision on the issue, granting an exemption from sanctions for a period of six months.

The Paks plant, built by Soviet specialists in the 1980s, currently accounts for half of all electricity generated and one-third of the electricity consumed in Hungary. Located on the banks of the Danube, 100 km south of Budapest, the plant operates four units with VVER-440 reactors.

Simultaneously, construction is underway for its second phase - Units 5 and 6. Moscow has confirmed its readiness to finance this project, estimated at 12.5 bln euro, which was originally planned to be funded 80% through a Russian loan. Following the commissioning of two new VVER-1200 nuclear reactors, the generating capacity of the Paks nuclear complex is expected to increase from the current 2,000 MW to 4,400 MW.

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