Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius told members of the Seimas that this could be a unique opportunity for Lithuania to wean itself off its energy dependence and Foreign Minister Audronius Ažubalis said that voting against Visaginas nuclear power plant would mean supporting analogous projects in Belarus and the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad.
The bill will now have to pass a third and final vote.
If the Parliament endorses the bill and other documents related to the project, a concession agreement with Hitachi on the Visaginas plant - the country's largest-ever energy project at an estimated 16 billion to 18 billion litas (EUR 4.6-5.2 b) - is planned to be signed.
Hitachi, the strategic investor, would own 20 percent of shares in the new facility and Lithuania would hold 38 percent. Latvia and Estonia would take stakes of 20 percent and 22 percent, respectively.
Final investment decisions are expected to be taken within the next several years. The Lithuanian government expects the new plant to be built by 2020 to 2022.
2012 06 19
Nuclear plant bill passes second reading in parliament
A new Law on Nuclear Power Plant passed its second reading on Tuesday in the Lithuanian parliament, in a vote of 72 to 18 with 32 abstentions.
Seimas / Šarūno Mažeikos/BFL nuotr.
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