Poland-U.S. agreement on developing Poland’s civil nuclear energy program signed

Within the next 18 months leading U.S. companies from the civil nuclear sector will carry out early engineering and design works on the program of construction of Poland’s nuclear power plants – according to a key provision in the Poland-U.S. agreement signed today by Secretary of State for Strategic Energy Infrastructure Piotr Naimski on behalf of the Government of Poland. The agreement sets the scope for the two partner countries to cooperate towards the development of a civil nuclear power program and the civil nuclear power sector in Poland.

In parallel to the preparatory works, government representatives from Poland and the U.S., together with U.S. financing institutions, will come up with a potential financing structure for the Polish Nuclear Power Program.

Crucial role of a joint Steering Committee

Both efforts will be coordinated by a Polish-U.S. Steering Committee. Over the next months, it will bring together representatives of both governments, agencies and financing institutions, as well as experts with track record in carrying out strategic energy infrastructure projects. The Committee will compile a concept and execution report that will be the basis for the Polish government to decide on the choice of nuclear technology and the strategic partner for its 20-year program of constructing nuclear power plants in Poland.

Long-term cooperation

In the long-term, the agreement defines a whole range of areas for cooperation between Poland and the United States. The focus is both on support for relevant business entities, as well as on government-led efforts, including:

regulatory cooperation, research and training, developing supply chains, public campaigns and raising public awareness, joint cooperation on projects in Europe.

This agreement is a vital element of implementing the updated Polish Nuclear Power Program, adopted by the country’s government on 2 October 2020.

Prior to its signing, the draft agreement was successfully notified to the European Commission, in line with Article 103 of the EURATOM Treaty.

On behalf of the United States, the agreement was signed on 19 October by Secretary of Energy, Dan Brouillette. Now the agreement will be brought for the approval by Poland’s Council of Ministers and will enter into force upon exchange of diplomatic notes between the two countries.

Source: KPRM