Bechtel Secures $20 Billion Contract on the Development of Poland's First Nuclear Facility
Bechtel has been awarded a $20 billion contract to construct Poland's first nuclear facility. This initiative marks a significant step in Poland's transition towards nuclear energy, fostering partnerships with local suppliers and advancing the nation's energy diversification efforts away from coal.
(Photo : Unsplash/Lukáš Lehotský )
Poland's First Nuclear Facility
On Friday, Mar. 1, Bechtel revealed that it had successfully granted its initial contracting agreements to construct Poland's first nuclear power facility, which was estimated to cost $20 billion. As mentioned, Bechtel's capacity to provide quality projects and help the community is improved when the company makes the most of chances for local suppliers. The Polish vendors will reportedly be the recipients of their initial procurement contracts.
A partnership between Bechtel and the Lubiatowo-Kopalino site in Pomerania has been established to construct and design Poland's inaugural nuclear power facility. The Polish utility Polskie Elektrownie JÄ…drowe will receive three AP1000® reactors from Bechtel, which will be delivered with Westinghouse Electric Company. These reactors will be used for the utility's first nuclear energy project.
Moreover, Bechtel and Polish suppliers will be able to establish long-term collaborations with the firms that have been chosen because they come from a variety of different industries and include translation, logistics, and technical services. Among the businesses that have entered into partnerships with Bechtel on this ground-breaking initiative are the following individuals and organizations:
- Energoprojekt - Katowice S.A. is a company that consistently ranks among Europe's most prominent design and engineering firms. Opportunities for EPK to support permitting documentation will be made available in exchange for its assistance with codes and regulations, environmental permitting approach, and permitting documentation support.
- Prochem S.A. is a Polish firm involved in engineering and construction projects and the environmental sector. It is expected that Prochem will be supplied with chances to create supporting documents for permits.
- Summa Linguae Technologies S.A. is a company that develops technology-enabled solutions to assist global, content-rich businesses with challenging multilingual data issues. In the future, Summa Linguae S.A. will reportedly support translation services.
Introducing Nuclear Power in Poland
After Germany, Poland is the company that produces the second most coal in Europe. In 2022, 42% of the nation's primary energy consumption was coal, while the remaining 87% was from fossil fuels. Despite its modest oil and natural gas production, Poland remains a substantial net importer of these commodities, with Russia being the primary low.
Thus, the nation is transitioning away from coal, notwithstanding its ample domestic coal reserves, in defiance of the European Union's (EU) ambitious climate policy objectives. The Energy Policy of Poland until 2040 (EPP2040), which was approved by the cabinet in February 2021, lays out the foundation for the energy transition that will take place in Poland. Early in 2005, the Polish cabinet concluded that to diversify the country's energy supply and cut carbon dioxide and sulfur emissions, the country needed to move quickly to implement nuclear power.
The goal was to have the first nuclear power station operational by 2020. In addition, the Ministry of the Economy received a report in 2009 that indicated nuclear power as the most cost-effective technique of reducing carbon dioxide emissions among the primary options for generating electricity. Afterward, a resolution was passed by the council of ministers that called for building at least two facilities in Poland, which would amount to at least 4.6 gigawatts of power out of a total capacity of 52 gigawatts. These plants would provide 15% of the power, with coal's part decreasing to 60% by 2030.
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