The foreign minister has said that without the use of nuclear energy, Europe will not be able to achieve its objective of climate neutrality by 2050.
During the 6th Central and Eastern Europe Nuclear Industry Congress in Prague, Péter Szijjártó said the European Union must end its practice of negative discrimination of nuclear energy.
The minister said the EU must not only ensure uniform criteria, but even promote nuclear energy, and argued that nuclear power plants can produce electricity safely, in a “green”, cheap and predictable way in the long term.
Minister Szijjártó said Hungary is a leader in fighting climate change, adding that the country’s nuclear investments could ensure that 90 percent of its electricity production would be carbon-neutral by 2030.
The minister added that Hungary has made it clear over the past decades that it is serious about its use of nuclear and clean energy.
Hungary’s upgraded nuclear power plant in Paks will help save 17 million tons in carbon emissions, he said, noting that the country’s transport sector produces an annual 12 million tons in CO2 emissions. In other words, the two new blocks in Paks will help save 1.5 times that amount.
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