(Reuters) - Ukraine’s parliament gave the green light on Jan. 12 for a joint project with Russia to build two nuclear reactors in western Ukraine, financed by a multi-billion dollar Russian loan.
Ukraine already operates 15 nuclear units at four nuclear power plants, and nuclear energy covers about a half of its electricity needs. But most power units were built in Soviet times and should reach the end of their working lives within the next 10 to 15 years.
The agreement, signed in April 2010, calls for construction of two Russian-designed units at the Khmelnytsky plant, each with a capacity of 1,000 megawatts.
Russia is to issue a loan to pay for the nuclear equipment it supplies to the project.
Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said last year that the loan could reach $2 billion, while one Russian official put it at “several billion of dollars.”
Ukraine’s relations with Russia have improved since Yanukovych won a presidential election last February, and the two countries have boosted ties in energy, security, industrial and aviation sectors.
In September, Russian nuclear fuel maker TVEL won the right to build a nuclear fuel plant in Ukraine by 2013.
State-owned TVEL, the single supplier of fuel for Ukrainian nuclear power plants, had competed for the contract with U.S. firm Westinghouse, owned by Japan’s Toshiba.
