Russia also to begin manufacturing of long lead equipment.

First concrete is likely to be poured for the Russia-supplied Paks 2 nuclear power station at the beginning of 2025, the director-general of state nuclear corporation Alexey Likhachev said during a visit to the site on Friday (22 September).

In parallel, Rosatom will begin the manufacturing of long lead equipment for the project to build two Generation III+ VVER-1200 pressurised water reactor (PWR) units for the expansion of the existing Paks nuclear station, in south-central Hungary.

Rosatom said Hungarian suppliers are involved in the work with more than 140 local companies engaged in various areas of the project.

It said the next stage of work includes soil stabilisation so pit preparation can continue for first concrete. In total, about one million cubic meters of soil will be removed.

Paks II, the company in charge of the project, said earlier this year that excavation work had begun of the main reactor pits for the two new units, Paks-5 and Paks-6.

In August, Russia and Hungary signed amendments to the 2014 contract for Paks 2.

The €12.5bn ($13.6bn) project has experienced delays, and Hungarian officials had discussed changing the contract to include a project management company to speed it up, though they gave few details about the plans.

The main construction licence for Paks 2 was issued by the Hungarian regulator in August 2022.

According to Hungary’s foreign minister Peter Szijjarto, completing the project by 2030 remains a “realistic target”.

The existing Paks station is Hungary’s only commercial nuclear power facility. Its four VVER-440 PWR units provide about 48% of the country’s electricity.