The Paks II NPP is the second stage of the existing Paks nuclear power plant, which is based 100 km south of Budapest and consists of four power units with an aggregate capacity of 2 gigawatts (GW). The new project will consist of two VVER-1200 power units with a total capacity of 2.4 GW, which will help increase the share of nuclear in Hungary’s energy mix from last year’s 49% to more than 70% (taking into account overall growth in power consumption). Reactors of this type will also be used at the El Dabaa NPP, which is currently under construction in Egypt and will become the first nuclear power plant in the country’s history. The cost of the Paks II NPP is estimated at EUR 12.5 billion, of which 80% are to be provided by Rosatom.
In order to prepare the safety report, the Paks II NPP design company had to complete the construction of the grouting zone, a wall that goes deep underground and protects the facility from groundwater. Currently, tens of thousands of piles are being installed to stabilize the soil in the pits dug for the construction of the two new power units. These operations will be followed by the installation of the core catcher, a cone-shaped metal structure weighing 730,000 tons that will contain the meltdown of the nuclear reactor core in the event of an accident. The construction of the power units themselves is expected to be completed by the early 2030s.
The launch of two new reactors will allow Hungary to reduce its gas consumption by 40% (by 3.5 billion cubic meters per year) and cut its greenhouse gas emissions by more than one-third (17 million tons of CO2 equivalent per year). The project will also make Hungary a leader among EU countries in the use of low-carbon energy sources. According to Ember, the total share of renewables and nuclear in Hungary’s energy mix stood at 70% in 2023 (against 67% for the EU). By the early 2030s, this share will exceed 90%, bringing Hungary closer to the figures demonstrated by France (92% in 2023), one of the world’s largest consumers of nuclear power.
