EU energy commissioner opposes further talks on reopening Bulgarian nuclear reactors

BRUSSELS, Belgium — EU Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs implied on Thursday (January 25th) that Bulgaria should not try to reopen discussions on reactors 3 and 4 of the Kozloduy nuclear plant. The two units were closed on December 31st, the day before Bulgaria’s EU entry, in line with a pre-accession treaty. Piebalgs noted that the shutdown — for safety reasons — had been agreed on between Brussels and Sofia and that altering Bulgaria’s position would send a bad signal.

His statement was in response to word that Economy and Energy Minister Roumen Ovcharov proposed — and the government endorsed — an action plan aimed at re-activating the units. Closing the reactors has contributed to a power shortage in the Balkans.