Romania becomes part of EU-backed nuclear energy project with France, Italy

Romania is set to be part of an Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) on nuclear energy announced this week by Stéphane Séjourné, Vice-President of the European Commission responsible for industrial strategy.

The project developed by France with Romania and Italy includes small modular reactors, advanced reactors, uranium management, supply, research on nuclear fusion, and the use of nuclear production for medical purposes.

The EU commissioner said that the initiative is “an integrated project” that aims to “create a competitive European ecosystem in nuclear energy” to “re-localize the industry, strengthen our competitiveness and achieve our climate objectives,” according to Politico.

In November 2023, the Genoa-based power plant company Ansaldo Energia and the Italian Nuclear Association signed a collaboration agreement with the French electricity company Électricité de France and with Gifen, the French nuclear industry association.

Ansaldo Energia also supported the initiative signed by the Italian Nuclear Association with the Romanian Atomic Forum, ROMATOM, defined as “a real support for the Romanian nuclear program, especially in the current phase of preparation for the Refurbishment activities of Cernavoda Unit 1,” Italian magazine Startmag pointed out.

The initiative also signals more support from the European Commission for nuclear energy. Earlier this year, Séjourné said that “there’s a part of Europe that I believe is the majority today, which considers that nuclear power should be part of our decarbonization strategy.”

So far, nuclear sources of energy were left out of the EU’s incentives for renewables. France, however, uses nuclear energy extensively and has championed the issue in recent years.

(Photo source: Meryll | Dreamstime.com)