The European Commission has opened infringement against Hungary for lack of compliance of the Paks nuclear power plant project with EU public procurement rules. Portfolio.hu says the move is not unexpected, as press reports have already heralded it.

The EU has, at least temporarily, blocked Hungary’s EUR 12 billion nuclear power station deal with Russia as Euratom refused to approve Hungary’s plans to import nuclear fuel exclusively from Russia. Other parts of the deal are also under investigation.

Hungary’s state-owned power company MVM and Russia's Nizhny Novgorod Engineering Company Atomenergoproekt have signed three implementation agreements for two new 1,200 megawatt nuclear reactors to be constructed at the Paks power plant.

This year, the Hungarian firm Ganz Engineering and Energetics Machinery llc. (Ganz ЕЕМ), part of Russia’s Atomenergomash, will supply a batch of pumps for the third reactor – under construction – of nuclear power plant in Rostov, eastern Russia.

Hungary is the second safest country in the world regarding the storage of nuclear materials. That according to the Washington-based Nuclear Threat Initiative that has compiled a list after surveying hundreds of establishments all over the world.

The Minister of National Development, Tamás Fellegi says the Paks Nuclear Power Plant, the only such plant in Hungary, is safe and will stand the stress test. He made the statement following his visit to the plant this week.

Hungary is mulling plans to build new blocks at its sole nuclear power plant in Paks, south of Budapest, to satisfy a large portion of domestic demand for electricity after 2030, business daily Világgazdaság said on Thursday.