Szijjarto named the date of pouring the first concrete for the Paks-2 NPP in Hungary

The pouring of the "first concrete" for the construction of the Paks-2 nuclear power plant in Hungary is scheduled for February 5, 2026, and all relevant permits have already been obtained. This was announced on November 18 by Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Economic Relations Peter Szijjarto.

He recalled that after the visit of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to the United States, Washington completely lifted sanctions against the Paks-2 project.

"The fifth of February is the exact date of pouring the first concrete into the ground under the current circumstances. All the technical and technological conditions for pouring the first concrete have been created, preparatory work is also proceeding according to the previously established schedule," the minister said in a video message on the YouTube channel.

According to him, the construction site has its own concrete plant. Szijjarto also added that he had telephone conversations with Alexey Likhachev, CEO of Rosatom State Corporation.

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Hungary and Russia agreed on the sidelines of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference in Vienna on September 15 to accelerate investments in the construction of the Paks-2 NPP. It was noted that new NPP power units could be put into operation by the beginning of the next decade. Szijjarto noted that Hungary continues to accelerate the construction of the new Paks-2 nuclear power plant with the participation of the Russian corporation Rosatom, despite attempts to disrupt the project.

Prior to that, on September 12, Thomas Rainier, the official representative of the European Commission (EC), announced the launch of a new procedure for approving Hungary's financing of the Paks-2 NPP reactors with the participation of Rosatom after the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union (EU). He expressed the opinion that the EC may again take a positive decision on this issue. In August, Likhachev noted that the Russian Federation expects to begin construction of the Paks-2 nuclear power plant in Hungary in November this year.

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