Minister Popovic: Serbia Needs to Build a Nuclear Power Plant, Wind and Solar Energy Are Not an Adequate Substitute

The minister without a portfolio in charge of innovations and technological development at the Government of Serbia, Nenad Popovic, has stated that the country should build a nuclear power plant in order to secure a stable supply of electrical energy in the future.

In a speech at the International Summit on Nuclear Technologies in Dubai, Popovic said that the needs for electricity would increase 50% in the next 15 years.

– A constant supply of electrical energy is a condition for any state to develop economically, to be independent and free. The most efficient way of securing a stable and sustainable supply is to build a nuclear power plant – he said, as announced by the Government of Serbia.

According to him, wind and solar power cannot replace nuclear energy, because nuclear power plants work 365 days a year, securing a stable and cheap supply of electricity for the economy and the citizens.

The minister said that the construction of a nuclear power plant would also considerably contribute to an increase in employment, because there are 10 to 15 jobs in related industries to each job in a nuclear power plant.

These are jobs with above-average salaries and an opportunity to keep young engineers in the country, Popovic pointed out and expressed his expectation that Serbia would have talks with potential partners in this project in the next period, so as to achieve the best price and attract the best technologies.

Earlier that day, the minister held a bilateral meeting with the management of the Russian state corporation Rosatom, where the construction of the Center for Nuclear Technologies, whose beginning is expected to take place by the end of 2022, was discussed.

He estimated that the center would make a significant contribution to raising Serbia’s capacities in the field of medicine and that it would be especially important for oncology patients, who will be able to get all the necessary therapies in Serbia once the center is built.

The center, he said, is also important for the development of Serbian workers in the field of nuclear technologies, where Serbia once used to be a leader in Europe.

The International Summit on Nuclear Technologies “Rosatom Week” is being held at the Expo 2020 Dubai from January 17 to 24, involving numerous state officials, company managers and leading world experts and scientists from the field of nuclear technologies.

Ministarstvo nauke, tehnološkog razvoja i inovacija Republike Srbije

Nenad Popović

International Summit on Nuclear Technologies in Dubai

nuclear power plants

hydro energy

wind energy

solar energy

electrical energy

jobs

EXPO DUBAI 2020

Rosatom Week