János Süli has been officially sworn in as minister without portfolio in charge of overseeing and managing the upgrade of the Paks nuclear power plant.
The new minister was sworn in during a session of parliament on Tuesday and was congratulated by the prime minister, members of government and the group leaders of the parliamentary parties.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced early last month that he would appoint a minister without portfolio to oversee the Paks project.
The government’s goal is to have the Paks plant provide for 50 percent of Hungary’s electricity consumption, with the remainder to be derived from renewable energy sources, mainly solar energy. The nuclear plant’s purpose is to provide cheap electricity to households and the economy.
The government will earmark 1.5 billion HUF (4.8m EUR) for development projects in Paks and surrounding municipalities this year.