Ban of Russian nuclear fuel elements would upend European energy market, says minister
Banning the purchase of nuclear fuel elements from Russia “would have tragic consequences not only for Hungary but for the whole of the European energy market, too”, Péter Szijjártó, the minister of foreign affairs and trade, said on Monday, adding that prices would sky-rocket and have a deleterious effect on Europe’s economy.
Electricity in Europe costs 2-3 times as much as in does in US or China, while gas is around 4 times as expensive, he said. “Obviously you can’t build a competitive economy this way,” he added in a ministry statement.
“But there’s still a chance to prevent these Brussels plans” by responding to the government’s Vote 2025 survey on the question of Ukraine’s EU accession, he said. “It’s time to stop this Brussels plan to support Ukraine while increasing the utility bills of Hungarian families several times over,” he added.
The minister noted that several central European countries have nuclear plants that use Russian technology and operate exclusively with Russian-made fuel elements.
Hungary completes Danube pumping station upgrade
Hungary’s energy minister wound up an upgrade of the Kvassay pumping station, which regulates water flow to the Ráckeve-Soroksár Danube branch, at a ceremony in Budapest on Monday. Csaba Lantos said the Kvassay pumping station played an important role in flood defence as well as water level and water quality regulation. The upgrade of the infrastructure was supported by over HUF 15.4bn of European Union funding.
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