European nuclear association praises Polish-US atomic deal

FORATOM, a European nuclear industry association, has given an up-beat assessment of a nuclear cooperation agreement signed between Poland and the USA, calling it a "positive signal."

Poland and the US concluded an intergovernmental cooperation agreement on Monday on the development of a civil nuclear power programme and the civil nuclear power sector in Poland, the US Embassy announced.

FORATOM wrote in a commentary to PAP that from the point of view of an international association representing the European nuclear energy industry in discussions with EU institutions, every project of building nuclear power plants is a positive signal, but particularly in countries that have hitherto not had nuclear power.

They wrote that the move confirmed that EU member states see nuclear power as a solution that can help them achieve multiple objectives at the same time, regardless of the technology chosen. In FORATOM's assessment, developing a nuclear power plant will enable Poland to not only achieve EU climate goals concerning CO2 reduction but will also be a major contribution to increasing energy security through reducing dependence on imported electricity.

The association also pointed out that nuclear power is a more reliable and flexible energy source than other low-emission sources such as solar power or wind energy. They said building a nuclear power plant would contribute to the country's and the region's economic development, among other means by providing thousands of new jobs. They cited research by consultancy firm Deloitte that shows that the development of 1 GW of nuclear power translates into 10,000 jobs.

The revised Polish Nuclear Power Programme provides for the construction of six nuclear reactors with a total capacity of 6-9 GW, with the first reactor to be operational in 2033.