Bulgarian Minister of Economy, Energy and Tourism Traycho Traykov has stated that Serbia is interested in the construction of the second Bulgarian nuclear power plant Belene, which will be built on the Danube River, in northern Bulgaria.

Traykov said that so far several foreign investors have shown interest in the construction of the plant, including Serbia, adding that there are still no concrete investment offers.

The construction of the Belena plant began in 2008, but was suspended soon after. The construction was entrusted with the Russian company Atomstroyexport, and the signing of the agreement in Sofia was attended by Vladimir Putin, the then president of Russia.

In 2009, the German company RWE, one of the crucial ones in the construction of the plant, withdrew from the project due to unsecured financing.

However, the Russians continued with their activities, and they offered a EUR 2 billion loan for the beginning of construction, on the condition that the funds be returned by the future strategic investor.

Former European Parliament rapporteur for Bulgaria Geoffrey van Orden stated in Sofia that the strategic partner in the construction of the nuclear power plant must be from the EU.

According to the project, the future plant will have two 440-megawatt reactors, and the construction costs were estimated to approximately EUR 4 billion.