About Social Media Today
A region in the earliest stages of its 21st century nuclear plans, the Baltics, like the Middle East, is getting attention from foreign firms hoping to penetrate a market where nuclear business relationships are not yet well established.
A case in point is the situation of Lithuania's planned Visaginas plant. Conceived as a replacement for the Soviet-era Ignalina station, ordered shuttered by the European Union as a term of Lithuania's accession, Visaginas is to be a cooperative project between Lithuania, Poland, Latvia, and Estonia. However, progress on the project has been slowed by bickering among the parties, who have yet to reach an agreement on the split of Visaginas' output. The facility's initial planned capacity of two 1,600-MWe reactors would be too small for each nation to get its desired share. With Lithuanian state-utility LEO's newest plans calling for only one unit, someone is sure to be cut out.
Recent signs indicate that the states are looking elsewhere for their nuclear needs. Estonia is investigating the prospects for a nuclear plant of its own, including a reported interest in Westinghouse's still in-development IRIS reactor. Poland is also looking into its own nuclear station, conducting talks with both established European nuclear power France and South Korea, an up and coming 21st century nuclear provider.
Changes are also underway in Lithuania. Top executives of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries visited Vilnius this week to talk with Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius about participation in the Visaginas plant. MHI's presence signals a reconsideration of the project plan, which had previously identified European heavyweights EDF, E.On, RWE, and Vattenfall as potential builders.
"We have discussed the possibilities of Mitsubishi to participate in the realization of various projects in Lithuania. This is one of the largest companies producing nuclear reactors in the world. We think that this is an occasion for the development of stronger business connections," Kubilius said.
The open environment of the Baltic nuclear market is exactly the sort MHI is looking for. The company has a large presence in the international nuclear sector, though often as a partner or manufacturer, and is searching for opportunities to ascend to the next tier of nuclear vendor. Interest from countries outside the region may also have a certain appeal to the Baltics, providing a neutral path amidst the power pulls of Russia and the European Union.
Fuel Cycle Week covers the global commercial nuclear industry, offering fresh analysis and commentary on the uranium, conversion, enrichment and reactor markets. FCW and its blog are published by International Nuclear Associates Inc., a Washington-D.C. based consulting company. Link to original post
