The Paks II. project is proceeding steadily and smoothly, with the construction of the 2,7-kilometer-long cut-off wall completed at the end of last year, and the focus now being the soil consolidation – Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó announced during a break of the government's meeting in Sopronbánfalva. The minister added that by mid-2025, a total of some 70000 piles will have to be placed in the ground at varying depths, of which three thousand have been completed so far. He also told that the construction of the facilities needed for the so-called first concrete pouring has also started in parallel. – The first concrete is one of the major milestones in the construction of a nuclear power plant – Péter Szijjártó emphasized.

– We can maintain the current schedule, which is to pour the first concrete by the end of this year. We can begin the necessary tests as early as February – the minister said. He also said that he had a phone call with Alexey Likhachev, CEO of Russia's Rosatom recently, with whom he reviewed the progress of the Paks investment.

The minister said that the Hungarian Atomic Energy Authority has issued all the recquired licenses for the current and upcoming works, adding that the experts in Paks are continuously working on the submission of further license applications. He also pointed out that the Parliament recently adopted an amendment to the Atomic Act, which simplified the licensing process, allowing the project to proceed faster than before with maximum consideration of safety requirements.

Péter Szijjártó announced that the production of the reactor pressure vessel, one of the so-called long lead items, is expected to start in April, while the core-catcher will be completed by April-May.

– The new Paks units will be the guarantee that Hungary's energy supply will be secure in the coming decades, we will be able to maintain the results of the overhead reduction and we will also do more for climate protection – the minister said.