Czechia: A small country with big nuclear energy ambitions

With conscionable 10.5 cardinal residents and an system overmuch smaller than those of France oregon Germany, the Czech Republic seems an improbable person successful Europe's atomic revival. Yet, successful Brussels and the Visegrád region, Prague is influential, softly assembling an ambitious atomic enlargement program.

Nuclear vigor already supplies astir 40 percent of the country's electricity, generated by six reactors astatine 2 plants: Dukovany and Temelín.

The authorities wants to spell overmuch further. Under its updated National Energy and Climate Plan, Czechia has acceptable a people of 68 percent atomic energy by 2040, a stock that would rival France proportionally, and acold transcend the EU mean of astir 23 percent.

An €18 cardinal stake connected Korean technology

The bosom of Prague's atomic strategy is simply a woody signed successful June 2025 with South Korea's KHNP to physique 2 caller 1,050 megawatt APR-1000 reactors astatine Dukovany, costing €18 billion. Work starts successful 2029; the archetypal portion goes online by 2036.

There’s an enactment for 2 much astatine Temelín, and a propulsion for tiny modular reactors (SMRs). A woody with Rolls-Royce was signed connected April 24, with approvals targeted by 2030.

The fiscal architecture is arsenic bold arsenic the engineering. State-owned inferior CEZ, which controls 70 percent of the country's procreation capacity, volition beryllium backed by authorities loans covering 70-80 percent of the task cost, a operation the European Commission has approved nether its authorities assistance rules. New capableness of up to 2,570 megawatts is planned, perchance vaulting Czechia into the apical tier of European atomic producers per capita.

Crisis arsenic catalyst

Czechia’s propulsion comes arsenic the Iran warfare and Hormuz closure disrupt LNG flows, sending a daze done European vigor markets. This reignites a statement increasing since Russia’s penetration of Ukraine successful 2022.

President Ursula von der Leyen calls earlier atomic downsizing a "strategic mistake," and Brussels has announced a €330 cardinal EU concern bundle for SMR development. Czechia’s authorities sees atomic arsenic the backbone of its ember phaseout, planned for 2033.

The situation has accelerated an already established path. Prague besides considers rising energy request from information centres and electrical vehicles, sectors needing stable, baseload powerfulness that renewables cannot reliably proviso yet.

"Nuclear tin play a relation successful supporting our vigor system, but we besides person to deliberation astir whether it is truly the halfway technology, and astatine what cost,” says Alexander Roth, an adept connected vigor argumentation astatine the Bruegel deliberation tank.

Leading the Visegrád bloc

Within the Visegrád Group, the confederation of Czechia, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia, Prague has emerged arsenic the starring unit successful atomic energy. All 4 countries run reactors and are pursuing expansion.

It was the Czech tender that archetypal crossed the decorativeness enactment with the KHNP contract, mounting a template for procurement and authorities financing that Hungary and Slovakia are present eyeing closely. Czechia besides exports astir 15 terawatt-hours of energy per year, playing a stabilising relation for the wider determination grid.

Public enactment is strong; 71-78 percent backmost atomic expansion, surveys show, among Europe's highest, with 77 percent expecting a affirmative nationalist impact. This statement enables Prague’s authorities to beforehand projects of standard and outgo that would beryllium arguable elsewhere.

A sceptical dependable from Brussels

Not everyone shares Prague’s optimism. Roth urges caution astir timelines and costs. Political rhetoric changes, helium notes, but economics enactment the same.

"The atomic projects that person been finished successful Europe successful caller years person been rather costly and rather lengthy," helium told Euronews. "The question is: tin governmental propulsion alteration that? I personally person my doubts."

Roth doesn’t disregard atomic entirely; helium admits it tin assistance decarbonise grids but stresses the gait of transition. "Europe tin physique star panels and upwind plants overmuch faster and get disconnected fossil fuels sooner than relying connected nuclear, which could instrumentality 10 years," helium said.

For Roth, the acquisition from the vigor crises is clear: fossil substance dependence indispensable end, and the fastest way is not a decade-long atomic operation program.

The mini-France of Central Europe

France, Europe’s atomic giant, operates 56 reactors generating 65-70 percent of its electricity. Czechia, with six reactors, produces 30 terawatt-hours yearly from 4.3 gigawatts of capacity.

Per capita, Czechia’s spread with France is narrower, and its 68 percent people by 2040 would spot it proportionally alongside Paris, contempt its smaller size. The 2 countries besides made antithetic choices connected the Dukovany contract. France's EDF pitched its EPR1200 reactor, promising collaborations with its ain new-build programme and integration into a broader European proviso chain.

Prague chose Korea's KHNP instead, mostly connected terms and way record. EDF's EPR plan has been plagued by delays and outgo overruns astatine Flamanville, France, and Olkiluoto, Finland, portion KHNP has completed aggregate units successful South Korea connected schedule. The determination was a quiescent but important verdict connected the authorities of the European atomic industry.

France and Czechia converge successful governmental volition and nationalist opinion. Czechia’s 71-78 percent enactment for atomic matches France’s 66-70 percent. Both countries usage vigor crises to bolster home low-carbon baseload. They actively propulsion for a stronger EU atomic model and advocator adjacent attraction for atomic vigor successful greenish financing.

Obstacles remain. Austria is simply a vocal professional and has launched ineligible actions against EU authorities assistance for Dukovany. A semipermanent atomic discarded tract indispensable beryllium picked by the 2030s; outgo overruns stay a risk, adjacent with Korean contractors. For now, Czechia’s strategy ranks among Central Europe’s astir coherent plans.

Graph & information by Leticia Batista-Cabanas