“We believe that the bidders have a strong interest in building a new nuclear power source in the Czech Republic. Since the tender launched in March this year, we have seen careful preparation from all bidders. They assembled strong teams for this contract, had a number of clarifying questions, and visited the Dukovany site," says Tomáš Pleskač, member of the Board of Directors and Director of the ČEZ New Energy Division.
Initial bids are the basis for clarifying technical and commercial parameters, but not for the actual selection or exclusion of contractors. "We expect the final bids at the end of September next year. The bids will then be evaluated by Elektrárna Dukovany II, from the ČEZ Group, and the evaluation report will be submitted to the state for approval. We expect the contracts to be finalized in 2024," added Tomáš Pleskač.
The initial bids were submitted to EDU II electronically, through special encryption and uniquely secured storage.
ČEZ’s main goal is a safe project, efficient for the Czech Republic. In the tender itself, the aim is to select the best contractor and a high-quality contract. The signing of the contract will be followed by a thorough preparation of the project documentation in order to adhere to a deadline of 2036 for the start of the new unit test operation. The new Dukovany unit will be built next to the existing power plant and serve as a future replacement for a portion of its installed capacity. The first unit of the Dukovany Nuclear Power Plant was commissioned in 1985.
Support for the development of nuclear energy in Czechia has increased by seven percent over the past year to 72 percent, thus being the highest in the history of measurement since 1993. The high support is mainly due to the current energy crisis. This is according to a survey conducted by IBRS at the end of October and the beginning of November.
In parallel with the tender procedure, the wholly-owned subsidiary Elektrárna Dukovany II (EDU II) is working on other parts of the project. After the Ministry of the Environment issued a positive opinion on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) in 2019, it also received a Siting Permit from the State Office for Nuclear Safety and a Generating Facility Authorization from the Ministry of Industry and Trade last year. The zoning procedure is currently underway, for which EDU II applied to the building authority on June 1, 2021.
The most important advantages of nuclear energy include energy security – independence from third countries, low operating costs, i.e. stable price in the long run, reliability of power supply and operational safety of nuclear power plants. The environmental aspects are crucial, with emission-free electricity making a major contribution to the fight against global warming. Nuclear power generation is not accompanied by CO2 emissions, so the operation of nuclear power plants significantly contributes to the overall reduction of carbon dioxide emission – the most prominent greenhouse gas.