The Slovenian opposition party SDS wants to hold a referendum as soon as possible on the planned construction of a new nuclear power plant. According to a recent survey by a Slovenian daily, a large majority would support the construction of a second reactor block at the existing Krsko nuclear power plant. The power plant is located only 70 kilometers from the Austrian border.
The conservative SDS has put forward the motion for a referendum in parliament – the left-liberal government is also planning a referendum, but only in a few years. Prime Minister Robert Golob has repeatedly emphasized that citizens will have the final say on the project. He did not want to hold the referendum until the concrete details and costs of the project were known. According to announcements, this won’t happen until 2027 or 2028.
Also vote on small modular nuclear reactors
The SDS, on the other hand, believes that citizens should now decide whether a second nuclear power plant should be built in Slovenia or not. It would be ideal if the referendum were to take place together with the European elections in June, MP Tomaž Lisec said at a press conference on Thursday. The SDS would ask voters not only about their support for a second reactor at the existing Krsko nuclear power plant, but also for small modular nuclear reactors.
According to SDS, nuclear energy is a stable, constant and green energy source. “Without this, the transition to a carbon-neutral society will be more difficult and expensive,” Lisec said. He expressed the hope that the majority of the population would support the new nuclear power plant. Citizens’ approval would give the project further impetus, the SDS MP said.
SDS accuses the government of favoring solar and wind energy
Lisec was convinced that Slovenian politics could uniformly support the project. The new nuclear power plant is not a project of one company, but of the entire country, it was said. Before a non-binding referendum can take place, the SDS proposal must be approved by parliament. “If the coalition wants to postpone this for reasons of solar and wind energy, no referendum will take place for the time being,” Lisec said. He may have been referring to previous accusations from the conservative opposition that the current government was delaying the nuclear project and favoring other sources, especially solar energy.
Seven in ten respondents are in favor of a new nuclear power plant
According to a study published this week by the Dnevnik daily, 68.6 percent of respondents support the construction of a second reactor unit at the existing Krsko nuclear power plant. Only 21.1 percent would reject a new nuclear power plant. According to the newspaper, young people and university graduates in particular were in favor of it.
Source: Krone
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