Construction Push Accelerates at Dukovany
Czechia plans to produce up to 60 per cent of its electricity from nuclear power by 2050. Engineers continue to expand the Dukovany power plant, where eight cooling towers rise over preparations for two new reactors. Mobile rigs drill 140 metres below ground and collect samples to confirm the site’s security for a $19 billion project that will at least double national nuclear production.
South Korea’s KHNP won a tender over France’s EDF to build two reactors, each delivering more than 1,000 megawatts. These units will join Dukovany’s four 512-MW reactors from the 1980s once they start operating in the second half of the 2030s. The deal also allows Czechia to request two additional units at the Temelín plant, which currently uses two 1,000-MW reactors. Officials plan to follow with small modular reactors across the country.
Petr Závodský, head of the Dukovany project, says nuclear power will supply at least half of Czechia’s electricity by 2050. He argues that the expansion will replace fossil fuels, stabilize prices, deliver reliable baseload power, and meet rising electricity demand from data centres and electric vehicles.
Nuclear Revival Sweeps Across Europe
Czechia’s nuclear buildout aligns with a Europe-wide return to atomic energy. Rising energy use and strict deadlines to cut carbon emissions drive this renewed interest in nuclear technology. Nuclear plants produce waste, but they do not emit greenhouse gases, making them attractive for countries seeking low-carbon alternatives.
The European Union strengthened the shift by adding nuclear energy to its sustainable investment classification. This move benefits nations such as Czechia, Hungary, Slovakia, and France. Belgium and Sweden reversed plans to phase out nuclear energy, while Denmark and Italy reconsider their long-standing opposition. Poland prepares to enter the nuclear-friendly bloc after signing a deal with Westinghouse for three reactors.
The EU derived 24 per cent of its electricity from nuclear generation in 2024. Britain deepened its commitment by signing a cooperation pact with the United States and investing £14.2 billion in the Sizewell C power plant, the first such project since 1995.
Czech utility CEZ, majority-owned by the government, formed a strategic partnership with Rolls-Royce SMR to develop small modular reactors, expanding future energy options.
Financial and Political Hurdles Shape the Debate
The Dukovany expansion requires more than €16 billion. The government will secure a loan and take an 80 per cent stake in the new facility. CEZ will repay the loan over 30 years, and the state will guarantee a stable electricity income for 40 years. Officials expect EU approval as part of the continent’s climate-neutrality strategy for 2050.
Závodský stresses that Czechia must replace coal, which currently provides 40 per cent of national electricity. The country plans to end coal use entirely by 2033.
Financing uncertainty delayed nuclear development in the past. CEZ cancelled a 2014 tender for two Temelín reactors when the government refused to guarantee long-term returns. Security concerns later excluded Russia’s Rosatom and China’s CNG from the Dukovany tender after the invasion of Ukraine. Czechia now relies on Westinghouse and Framatome for fuel at both nuclear plants, reducing dependence on Russia. KHNP will provide fuel for ten years once the new reactors start operating.
Opposition continues despite broad public support. Groups such as Friends of the Earth argue that nuclear energy costs too much and lacks a permanent facility for spent fuel. Critics in Austria, which abandoned nuclear energy after the Chernobyl disaster, remain especially vocal. Past conflict over the Temelín plant caused political tensions and border blockades in 2000. Austria’s lower house has already rejected Czechia’s plan to add small modular reactors.
Despite resistance, Czechia maintains its goal of enlarging its nuclear fleet, replacing coal, and positioning itself as one of Europe’s most nuclear-reliant countries.
