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Hungarian-Russian cooperation in the field of atomic energy has an over 60-year-long history. It started in 1955 with the signing of a bilateral agreement which established the Budapest Research Reactor (BRR), a VVER-type Soviet designed reactor. This reactor went critical in 1959. The initial thermal power was 2 MW. A second Hungarian reactor, a training reactor was designed and constructed between 1969 and 1971. It is a pool-type reactor, located at the Budapest University of Techology. It first went critical in 1971 originally generating 10 kW power which was increased to 100 kW in 1980. 

The intergovernmental agreement between Hungary and Soviet Union to build the first nuclear power plant in Hungary was signed on 28 December 1966, and in 1967, the Paks site 100 km south of Budapest was chosen.

The Paks Nuclear Power Plant has four VVER-440 units which were installed between 1982 and 1987. The original 440 MW capacity of the units was increased to 500 MW as a result of efficiency enhancement programmes.

The Russian nuclear fuel company TVEL has been a reliable supplier for Paks NPP for three decades Collaboration also exists in the area of service and modernisation.

JSC Rusatom Service (a member of the ROSATOM Group) and MVM Paks Ltd. signed the framework agreement on the supply of equipment and spare parts for the maintenance and upgrading of the four existing Paks NPP units in October 2015.


JSC Rusatom Service and MVM Paks Ltd. signed a framework agreement on modernisation and maintenance of the Paks NPP in June 2016.


Paks NPP II


On 14 January 2014, representatives of the Hungarian and Russian governments signed an inter-governmental agreement concentrating on cooperation in the area of peaceful utilisation of nuclear power and the construction of two new power units at the Paks plant.


At the end of March 2014, a 10-billion-euro credit agreement was signed between Hungary and Russia to finance the development of two new units at Paks NPP. In December 2014 MVM Paks II Nuclear Reactor Development JSC and Nizhny Novgorod Engineering Company Atomenergoproekt (NIAEP-ASE) signed three implementation agreements for Paks II NPP construction.


The expansion of Paks NPP, which was built together by Soviet and Hungarian nuclear specialists, is of strategic importance to Hungary's energy security – significantly, the plant provides more than 50% of the country's electricity. Based on the decision of the Hungarian parliament, the operating time of the 4 units of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant can be extended by another 20 years. The Paks II. nuclear power plant project received the construction permit from the Hungarian Atomic Energy Agency in August 2022. The project entered the implementation stage in August 2023. In 2023 the 2.7 km long slurry wall was completed and the soil were excavated up to the -5 meter level. In this year Soil consolidation has begun, after which the extraction of soil from the working pit will be completed in order for preparinmg to the first concrete pouring. The two new VVER 1200, 3+ generation units will start commercial operation in the early 2030s.


Today the Paks NPP expansion project is in the preparatory phase.