The Minister of Energy, Virgil Popescu, confirmed, at the coordination meeting with ”Like-Minded” member states in the field of nuclear energy, Romania’s support for the promotion of this energy source to achieve the decarbonization objectives of the European Union and to ensure security of supply.

“On the margin of the informal Energy Council, we had a coordination meeting with Like-Minded member states in the field of nuclear energy. On this occasion, we confirmed Romania’s support for the promotion of this indispensable energy source for achieving the EU’s decarbonization objectives and for ensuring security in supply. (…) I continue to support the inclusion of nuclear energy in the EU’s energy policies aimed at decarbonization and the recognition of the important contribution of this energy source, including from the perspective of producing clean hydrogen,” the minister wrote on Tuesday on his website Facebook, according to Agerpres.

He presented the projects in the civil nuclear field developed by Romania (re-engineering of Unit 1, completion of units 3 and 4 at Cernavodă, implementation of the innovative technology of small modular reactors), in the context where nuclear energy is a strategic option for Romania .

Also, in the field of small modular reactors, the minister positively appreciated the cooperation with NuScale for the Doicesti project, stressing the progress made by Romania in this state-of-the-art field and the need for a coordinated and harmonized approach at the EU level for all technologies.

“During the discussions, I emphasized the importance of maintaining good coordination between like-minded member states on the issue of the action filed by Austria at the EU Court of Justice regarding the Complementary Delegated Act that includes nuclear energy and natural gas in the scope of of the EU Taxonomy for Sustainable Financing. Romania will intervene in the action pending before the CJEU on behalf of the European Commission, in support of the Complementary Delegated Act. I agreed with counterparts from the other participating states to intensify cooperation on key aspects such as new nuclear projects, research and innovation, ensuring the skills and qualified workforce”, Virgil Popescu also wrote on the social network.

According to AFP, 11 EU member states, led by France, reaffirmed on Tuesday their will to “consolidate European cooperation” in the field of nuclear energy to develop “new projects”, insisting on the role of atomic energy in the decarbonization of the economy.

“Nuclear energy is one of the many tools that allow us to achieve our climate goals, to produce electricity and to guarantee security of supply,” the 11 states said in a joint statement signed on the occasion of a meeting of European Energy Ministers, organized in Stockholm.