The Belene nuclear power plant (NPP) in Bulgaria has been talked about for over half a century. It was to be the first nuclear power plant in Bulgaria on an excellent site for this: near the Danube, the area is seismically safe, and there are no large settlements nearby. In 1981, nuclear engineers began designing the power plant, and new blocks of high-rise buildings were laid out in the town of Belene. And then the nuclear power plant began to be haunted by problem after problem.
In 1987, the nuclear engineers completed the preparation of technical documentation. Later than planned: due to the tragedy at the Chornobyl nuclear power plant, the project had to be supplemented with safety standards. While they were doing this, a financial crisis began in the country. Sofia could not pay off external borrowers, the amount of available money decreased significantly. Slowly, but still, construction progressed, and thousands of Cubans and Vietnamese were even invited to Belene for friendly socialist assistance and exchange of experience. The main elements of the nuclear reactors were provided by the Soviet Union, and later by Russia.
After the collapse of the socialist bloc, the crisis in the Bulgarian economy became even more serious. It turned out that the country simply did not need so much electricity anymore. And Bulgaria already had another nuclear power plant — Kozloduy. The point of building Belene was only to diversify the sources of electricity supply and in case of rapid economic growth in the distant future. The financial crisis of 2008 postponed the second factor, and the accident at the Japanese nuclear power plant Fukushima-1 in the spring of 2011 leveled the first. The Bulgarian leadership clearly stated that they would not build a nuclear power plant anymore. After a short period of work in 2010-2012, the site was again closed.
A Bulgarian official looks at the Belene construction site in March 2010. At that time, Bulgaria, with financial assistance from Russia, decided to unfreeze the construction of the station.
Getty Images / «Babel'»
By that time, Bulgaria had already joined the EU and NATO, and Russia was becoming increasingly hostile towards both entities. Kozloduy began to decommission older units that used nuclear fuel from “Rosatom”, while the new ones used raw materials from the American company Westinghouse. Belene became an additional risk factor: the station was to be serviced by Russian specialists, the reactors were designed for Russian fuel — and this would have increased Moscowʼs influence over the country. The completion of the station became a politically sensitive issue.
On the one hand, Bulgaria has already paid a lot for the equipment — more than $1.1 billion. On the other, it has already become obsolete. Officials from the Ministry of Energy pressed that with two nuclear power plants the country would become a stronger player in the electricity market, while the Ministry of Economy assured that completing the construction was too expensive, and the profitability of the project was not obvious. Meanwhile, Brussels reminded that the Russians would definitely use Bulgariaʼs dependence for their geopolitical purposes.
Equipment from the unfinished Belene NPP is stored in the engine room, 2018.
Getty Images / «Babel'»
To resolve the dispute, in 2013 the country held a national referendum with a single question:
“Should Bulgaria develop nuclear energy by building a new nuclear power plant?”
60% of citizens answered “yes”. But the following year, Russia began a war in Ukraine, and Bulgarian law enforcement officers discovered significant financial abuses at the facility. A sluggish investigation began.
In 2016, Bulgaria decided to abandon the construction of the plant and offered to buy the equipment, for example, from Iran. Another option is to transfer the nuclear power plant to private hands. However, due to the cost of completing the construction of more than $5 billion, it was not possible to find an investor.
Meanwhile, Russia is increasing its influence on the country. Energy is becoming its key tool. The Kremlin is effectively taking control of Bulgariaʼs gas transportation infrastructure. Russian oil companies, such as “Lukoil”, operate in the country. Cooperation continues at the level of officials. For example, the State Secretary of the Bulgarian Ministry of Energy (a key non-political position in the department) was Lyubomira Gancheva, one of the leaders of the pro-Russian ABC party. In 2020, Gancheva attended the Russian referendum, where Putin secured the opportunity to rule until at least 2036. The most authoritative Bulgarian business newspaper, Capital, called Gancheva a Putin fan.
Lyubomira Gancheva in Crimea during the referendum on changes to the Russian Constitution, July 1, 2020.
The same publication, which has been closely following the construction of the NPP for years, states that Belene has become an instrument of manipulation and pressure from Russia on Bulgarian society. The rhetoric regarding the completion of the station can be used to accurately determine the views of a politician or party. If statements are made about energy independence and the need to complete the station, the politician or political force is clearly pro-Russian. If they talk about closing the project, they are talking about democratic or pro-European politicians. The publication titled its review article on 30 years of Russian-Bulgarian relations as follows:
“Russia in Bulgaria: Gas, Corruption and the Fifth Column.”
This material was published after the start of Russiaʼs full-scale invasion of Ukraine. At the same time, Bulgaria began discussing cooperation with Ukrainian nuclear engineers. First, that Ukrainian nuclear power plant specialists could help Bulgaria completely sever ties with Russia — as Ukraine gradually did after 2014 (Babel wrote about this in more detail here). And second, that Kyiv could purchase power plants to complete the Kherson nuclear power plant, because Ukraine needs additional capacity.
The countryʼs largest party, the GERB, supported the sale of the equipment. But then a new factor appeared — unprecedented political instability for the country. Since 2020, after mass anti-corruption protests, the center-right GERB began to lose influence. The country has been holding one election after another — in October 2024, the seventh parliamentary election in three years was held. New parties have emerged and gained strength, including pro-Russian ones such as “Revival” and “Velychi”. And the GERB, in order to form a coalition, has to listen to small partners — among them are pro-Russian socialists.
The Bulgarian political environment is again debating whether to sell the equipment. And if they do, isn’t Ukraine’s offer of $600 million too cheap? And if they agree to such a price, should they agree to Ukraine’s offer to divide the payment into parts, since Kyiv doesn’t need all the equipment at once? Or should they use the site and part of the equipment for something else altogether — for example, a data center?
“We haven’t sold [these reactors] for ten years. We can sell them next month, we can sell them in five months. But first, I would like President Trump, Elon Musk, Microsoft, and Bill Gates to look at what we can do. Is there a Bulgarian who wouldn’t want the most powerful artificial intelligence center here?” said GERB leader Boyko Borisov after a conversation with Socialist leader Atanas Zafirov.
Bulgarian socialists claim that a center for artificial intelligence systems could be built on the territory of Belene, and its energy would be provided by a small nuclear power plant. The American side has allegedly expressed interest in the project.
The Ukrainian Ministry of Energy says that they have not received any documents about Bulgariaʼs change of position. However, the parties have not signed any agreements in principle yet. The First Deputy Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Energy Oleksiy Kucherenko believes that the Bulgarians are simply trying to extort more money for the equipment.
Some of the almost completed Belene quarters for nuclear power workers are abandoned. Entry to the nuclear power plant territory.
And the town of Belene has been living in anticipation all these years. When the prospect of becoming a prestigious town of nuclear engineers seemed close, the Marie Curie School, a thematic school, and even the “Yadrenalin” theater troupe appeared there. All of them still exist, although now the nuclear power plant site employs only about two hundred townspeople — as security guards. Seven residential blocks for nuclear engineers, which were supposed to be built back in the 1980s, stand empty. And in addition to the glory of the main Bulgarian long-term construction project, Belene is gradually acquiring another — a town in which, due to the humidity, it is simply impossible to escape from mosquitoes.