Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob said that the Government is currently considering holding a national referendum on the construction of second unit at the country’s sole nuclear power plant Krsko.
PM Golob explained that Slovenian citizens must be given the opportunity to make a decision on such an important project once experts come up with technical solutions and all necessary permits are obtained. He also noted that, if there are more nuclear facilities in operation in Europe, the energy situation on the continent would be much better than today.
Last July, Slovenian Ministry of Infrastructure has issued an energy permit for the construction of the second unit at NPP Krsko, a step that allows permitting procedures to begin and comes a week after the national climate strategy enshrined nuclear as a long-term energy option. The project will be managed by the state-owned Gen Energija.
Later that year, COO of Gen-Energija Danijel Levicar said that the final investment decision on the construction of the second unit at the plant will be made by 2027. He stressed that a single nuclear reactor is not enough to cover the rising energy demand of Croatia and Slovenia given the shortage that the entire SEE region currently faces, adding that the second unit at NPP Krsko would significantly ease electricity prices. He said that nuclear energy will contribute with an annual electricity output of 9 TWh of the total of 10 TWh that Slovenia aims to bring under its green transformation plan by 2035.
696 MW NPP Krsko, located on the border with Croatia, provides about 40 % of Slovenia’s electricity.
