On Tuesday, 9 December, the European Commission approved a package of Polish measures designed to support the construction and operation of the Lubiatowo-Kopalino nuclear power plant, which will consist of three reactors with a total capacity of 3,750 MW (see EUROPE 13548/33).
Poland plans to support this investment specifically with a €14 billion equity injection, that being around 30% of the project’s costs, into Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe (PEJ), the project owner. The company will also receive a State guarantee covering 100% of the debt taken on to finance the project.
For 40 years, the Polish authorities will provide electricity price support by entering into a ‘two-way contract for difference’. If the market price is lower than the reference price set in accordance with a methodology assessed by the European Commission, the Polish State will pay the difference. If it is higher, PEJ will pay the Polish State the difference.
According to the European Commission, the commitments that Warsaw has made ensure that the public aid is proportionate and will not unduly distort competition. Included among these commitments are a shortened duration of the price support mechanism (reduced from 60 years to 40 years) and a revision of the formula for calculating PEJ’s remuneration while notably taking the public capital injection and State guarantees into account. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)