EU Offers 500 million Euros for shutdown nuclear plants

The European Union on Thursday decided that to offering 500 million euros to Bulgaria, Lithuania and Slovakia to close down reactors in three Soviet-era nuclear plants. Bulgaria is to receive 185 million euros to decommission four reactors in Kozloduy; Lithuania 210 million euros for two reactors in Ignalina; and Slovakia 105 million euros for two reactors in Bohunice, the European Commission said in a statement. The money comes on top of the over 2.8 million euros that the EU has already pledged in nuclear decommissioning aid for the three former Soviet-bloc countries, whose accession to the EU in 2004 was conditioned on them shutting down unsafe reactors.