Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-11-16-Speech-2-133"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.19991116.8.2-133"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, Honourable Members, in Agenda 2000 and in numerous opinions of the European Council, the European Parliament and other European committees, reference has continued to be made to the fact that, as a precondition to EU membership, the candidate countries of Central and Eastern Europe must guarantee a high level of safety of their nuclear power installations.
To assist with the shutdown of the two nuclear power stations in Lithuania and the Slovak Republic that have been mentioned, the Commission has committed itself to providing non-repayable financial aid from the 1999 PHARE programme. Most of these subsidies will be paid through an international credit fund managed by the EBRD.
As of the year 2000, we intend providing financial support in the form of up to EUR 20 million per year for every shutdown measure. However, these subsidies are not intended for the shutdown measures themselves, but are rather intended to also support the resulting measures that arise in the traditional energy sector. In Lithuania, for example, there is a need for market deregulation and technical modernisation in the non-nuclear electricity sector to compensate for the shutdown of the Ignalina nuclear power station.
On 13 October, the Commission stated in the conclusions to its general document on the progress reports that it would also enter into membership talks with Bulgaria in the year 2000. However, we would recommend that this be made dependent on the Bulgarian Government deciding by the end of 1999 on acceptable dates for the shutdown of units 1 to 4 of the Kosloduj nuclear power station and on meaningful progress being made in the economic reform process. I would like to emphasise that the decision on the shutdown of Kosloduj is a crucial condition. It will be hardly possible to reach a consensus in Helsinki on entering into talks with Bulgaria if this problem is not resolved.
On this matter, I am currently in close contact with the Bulgarian Government. There are signs that there is the political will to find an acceptable solution once the Bulgarian Parliament has approved the possibility of deviating from the dates for closure cited in the country’s energy strategy. However, the talks have yet to reach a breakthrough.
As it has done with Lithuania and the Slovakian Republic, the Commission is prepared to provide Bulgaria with support in the form of similar facilities as soon as Sofia decides on the closure of the dangerous reactor blocks. The Commission is also prepared to grant a EURATOM loan for the modernisation and refitting of units 5 and 6 of the Kosloduj nuclear power station. However, granting of this loan is dependent on an agreement being reached on a deadline for the closure of the four older units.
Having now reported in detail on the latest development with regard to the nuclear power stations in the candidate countries that cannot be updated, I would like to say a word about the reactors in the New Independent States that can and those that cannot be updated. In the last week, the members of the PHARE Management Committee issued an opinion approving the Commission programme under which EUR 11 million from PHARE funds will be made available for financing safety measures in nuclear power stations in the candidate countries and for financing measures to be taken by the licensing authorities in the candidate countries. The Commission intends to continue providing this aid throughout the entire period covered by the Financial Perspective for the years 2000 to 2006. Parallel to this, recipients of aid from the TACIS programme will continue to receive financial support to achieve the targets of Agenda 2000, including strengthening of the safety culture, improved management of incinerated nuclear material, efforts to close down Chernobyl, the establishment of a working group to work jointly with Armenia on the issue of the Medzamor nuclear power station, and other measures.
The Commission knows – and I am sure that the Members of Parliament agree with this opinion – that the closure of nuclear power stations imposes a heavy burden on national economies faced with radical change, particularly in those countries that, having won independence from the Soviet Union, have only recently set themselves up as independent states.
The Commission sees it as its obligation to achieve this target as soon as possible. However, we cannot do this alone. The international community must act together. It shares a common interest in establishing European safety standards. Both the Member States and the international community must be on hand to provide help and advice to the candidate countries. Furthermore, raising the safety standard of nuclear installations by either refitting reactors that can be updated or closing down reactors classed as ones that cannot be updated will entail significant costs.
For this reason, the Commission would like to arrange with the candidate countries concerned for donors’ conferences to be held aimed at setting up special credit funds for Lithuania, Slovakia and Bulgaria. It is intended that the first of these conferences will be held for Lithuania at the beginning of the year 2000. We urgently advise the Member States as well as the third countries, particularly those with regional interests in Northern, Central or south-east Europe, to contribute towards these three funds. We shall plan these funds carefully, taking into account that additional money is also required for the G7-supported fund to finance dismantling of the Chernobyl reactor next year.
Although we have made some achievements, much will still be demanded of us in the future. We must insist that nuclear safety on the eastern external borders of the Union is accorded top priority. There is now a realistic prospect of an effective shutdown of the problematic nuclear reactors in candidate countries. This is both a political and economic task. The European Parliament can rest assured that the Commission will pursue this task with the utmost vigour. I hope that the Commission will be able to count on the support of the Members of Parliament in tackling this difficult task in the best interest of our citizens.
May I repeat at this point what I have previously said on numerous occasions: with regard to nuclear safety, the Commission will accept no compromises. The European Union has left no room for doubt that nuclear reactors that owing to basic lacks of technical planning are classed as incapable of being updated must be shut down as part of the preparation for accession. These include eight reactors from the nuclear power stations at Ignalina in Lithuania, Kosloduj in Bulgaria and Bohunice in the Slovak Republic.
In the past few years, the Union has provided comprehensive aid within the framework of the PHARE programme. From 1991 to the present day, the Commission has provided almost EUR 2 million to finance concrete measures for the short-term improvement of safety levels. However, it has also vigorously strived to pursue its aim of ensuring the shutdown of reactors that cannot be updated.
I would like to put my following remarks in this political context, and begin by reporting that two of the three countries concerned have committed themselves to shutting down their reactors, and in the process have laid down concrete time-scales for closures. Talks are currently in progress with the third country, and I am very confident that a solution will be found before the European Council meets in Helsinki.
At the start of September, the Lithuanian Government adopted a new national energy strategy obliging it to shut down unit 1 by 2005 and to set the date for the shutdown of unit 2 within the framework of the next national energy strategy, which will be passed in 2004. The Commission is assuming that unit 2 will be shut down by the year 2009 at the latest. This new energy strategy was accepted by the Lithuanian Parliament on 5 October with a clear majority of 63 votes in favour with 31 votes against.
The Slovak Government officially informed the Commission on 28 September of its decision to shut down reactors 1 and 2 of the Bohunice V 1 nuclear power station ahead of schedule by 2006 and 2008. This decision was taken even after the Slovak Republic had in previous years invested more than EUR 200 million in the improvement of reactor safety. I am aware that some people consider that their expectations with regard to the shutdown of Bohunice have not been met, and I take these concerns seriously.
Earlier shutdown of the reactor blocks would indeed be desirable. However, I must also say that nuclear reactors cannot be shut down overnight. It must also be clear that the particular country concerned requires considerable technical and financial support. I must also point out that Community acquis in the field of nuclear safety and in particular radiation protection is extremely limited. At this point in time, each Member State and therefore also each candidate for Membership is free to choose its own form of energy production. The only principle that everyone in the Union must observe is that the highest internationally accepted standard of safety must be guaranteed.
The Commission is therefore of the opinion that Lithuania and the Slovak Republic have, in their decisions to shut down their reactors, made the necessary commitments in the field of nuclear safety to justify entering into membership talks with them. However, this does not rule out the possibility that there may be room for further flexibility. The Commission considers the promises made by Lithuania and Slovakia to be necessary steps towards effective shutdown. However, the aim itself remains to be achieved.
Let us now concentrate on the actual implementation of the adopted decisions on shutdowns. Lithuania will have to pass a shutdown act formally ordering the operator to initiate the shutdown procedure. An action plan for the implementation of the national energy strategy is currently being drawn up. The Slovak Republic will also have to begin planning for shutdowns. Our cooperation with these countries is now moving to the implementation phase."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
"(Applause))"1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples