Bulgaria’s Finance Ministry said Roseksimportbank had agreed to cover part of the cost of upgrading Kozloduy. Roseksimportbank will provide an $80 million loan that will be used to finance modernisation of Kozloduy’s two newest reactors, units 5 and 6.
The loan carries a 7.5% annual interest rate, and must be paid back within 15 years, with a five year grace period. The total cost of the upgrade has been estimated at $380 million, and Kozloduy has already begun work using its own funds.
The 1000MWe reactors are being modernised by Westinghouse Electric and a consortium involving Atomenergoexport, Framatome and Siemens. The work is being funded by a r212.5 million loan from the European Commission in May. This loan is disbursed in separate tranches, extended one a year for six years. Each is subject to a separate financial contract specifying interest and the payment scheme.
Westinghouse is using a $77 million credit granted to Sofia by Citibank in July, with a five year grace period repayable over 20 years. This will be extended in two tranches in June 2005 and June 2007 with interest equal to the variable LIBOR plus 0.03%.
