Czech ruling party pushes for nuclear power -paper

Saturday, March 1, 2008

The Czech Republic's ruling Civic Democrats (ODS) will seek a revision of their government pact with two other parties so that new nuclear power plants can be built, the Hospodarske Noviny newspaper reported on Thursday. The paper quoted the head of the lower house's economy committee, Oldrich Vojir, as saying that his party would propose building new nuclear blocs after a group of experts presents a report later this year on energy policy options.

"We will ask for a revision of the government manifesto, in order to avoid politics being the brake of nuclear energy development," the paper quoted Vojir as saying.

The government pledged in its 2007 manifesto that it would not decide on building new nuclear stations before the 2010 election, a clause demanded by the Green Party, a junior partner in the centre-right ruling coalition.

The Greens have opposed any change in the policy and a demand for nuclear revival would shake the fragile coalition.

The central European country's main power company CEZ already runs two atomic power stations, Temelin in the south and Dukovany in the southeast.

It has been preparing ground to expand the 2,000-megawatt Temelin station.

[PRAGUE/Reuters/Finance.cz]

Posted in |