"Unprecedented case in nuclear energy history": Expert on Ukraine buying reactors from Bulgaria

This was stated on Espreso by Olha Kosharna, co-founder of the NGO "Anti-Crisis Expert Nuclear Center of Ukraine" and an expert in nuclear energy and safety, regarding the purchase of reactors from Bulgaria for the Khmelnytskyi NPP.

"The equipment, valued at no less than 600 million euros, is missing steam generators. There should be eight for two reactors, but there are only four. Even worse, the Bulgarians don’t want to sell those four either, as they’re keeping them due to issues with one of their own steam generators. My colleagues calculated that steam generators make up 50% of the 600 million euro cost. So, this looks like a corruption scheme — paying 600 million euros but effectively getting 300 million in corruption margin. This is blatant impudence, with violations of the Constitution, laws, and Verkhovna Rada regulations. I believe this is the most shameful case in Ukrainian parliamentary history. And the president forced a vote on a bill that shouldn’t have been voted on by the Verkhovna Rada," she said.

Kosharna also highlighted that these are Russian technologies, being bought during Russia’s war against Ukraine, while Ukraine is urging EU countries to sanction Rosatom, Russia's nuclear energy agency. She added that Ukraine currently faces different challenges in its unified energy system.

"Last year, we lost 80-90% of coal-fired power generation and 40% of hydropower. We lack the flexible capacities needed to balance the power system during peak consumption. We have enough base capacities at nuclear power plants. But the main networks, for example, aren’t built to transmit large amounts of electricity from the right bank, where the Rivne and Khmelnytskyi NPPs are located, to the left bank, where all generation has been destroyed, including the Zmiivka and Kurakhove thermal power plants in Kharkiv. Electricity shutdown schedules have been in place for weeks now," she explained.

The nuclear energy expert stressed that Ukraine needs solutions that can be built quickly.

"This means generating plants using local energy sources like peat, agricultural waste, biogas, or even gas. And communities should be supported instead of Energoatom having to transfer 27 billion to the state budget as dividends. The government should help communities because these plants are built quickly, unlike large power units that take decades and exceed the estimated cost. Not to mention, all procedures have been violated. There’s no feasibility study, no project approved by the Cabinet of Ministers. None of the procedures required by nuclear energy legislation have been completed. This is an unprecedented case in nuclear energy history, where equipment is bought for a project that hasn’t been approved at the government level," she emphasized.

What is known about the new power units at Khmelnytskyi NPP

On April 2, 2024, the Ukrainian government approved a draft law to complete the third and fourth power units at the Khmelnytskyi NPP and submitted it to parliament. Construction of these units started in the late 1980s but was halted in 1990 due to a Verkhovna Rada moratorium.

On April 11, 2024, Energoatom announced the start of construction for the fifth and sixth power units at the Khmelnytskyi NPP, with plans to complete the third and fourth units simultaneously.

In July, corruption risks were identified in the draft law for completing the third and fourth power units.

The Ukrainian authorities have prioritized finishing power units No. 3 and No. 4 as part of their Energy Strategy until 2050. According to the strategy, the third power unit is expected to be connected to the power grid by 2028.

Deputy Minister of Energy Roman Andarak stated that Ukraine intends to use new equipment from Bulgaria to complete the nuclear units at the Khmelnytskyi NPP.

Director of Energy Programs at the Razumkov Center, Volodymyr Omelchenko, told Espreso that the construction of new units at Khmelnytskyi NPP “won’t happen” because the project is “aimed at future elections.”

On February 10, members of parliament gathered evidence of budget embezzlement by Energoatom, which was handed over to the National Anti-Corruption Bureau. However, Energoatom claims this is “destructive criticism” from opponents of the completion project.

On February 11, the Verkhovna Rada approved a bill to purchase two nuclear reactors for the Khmelnytskyi NPP from Bulgaria.