China urged to fully fund Argentina’s US$8.3 billion nuclear plant as debt tightens
- Agreement signed in February has Buenos Aires picking up 15 per cent of the bill for the new facility
- But an IMF deal requiring the country to tighten its belt has prompted a request to Beijing for funding help
A tighter fiscal outlook has led Argentina to press China for full financing of its US$8.3 billion nuclear plant, after signing an agreement in February for its construction.
The South American country is grappling with high debt levels and needs to hit a fiscal balance by 2025 from a 3 per cent deficit last year as part of a recent deal with the International Monetary Fund.
The China National Nuclear Corporation said it would finance 85 per cent of the nuclear power plant, with Argentina shouldering the rest, but Buenos Aires is hoping to renegotiate the agreement.
“We’re aiming for 100 per cent in terms of financing from China to guarantee no delays, given the problems we have with funding,” said Jorge Sidelnik, executive director of state operator Nucleoelectrica Argentina, the local partner which operates the country’s three existing nuclear power plants.
The new Atucha III will be built on the same 50-hectare (123.5 acres) site as the existing Atucha I and Atucha II plants near the city of Lima in Buenos Aires province and will employ some 7,000 construction workers. About 700 people will be needed to run it.
During a tour of the facilities, Sidelnik said the plant would require 99 months of construction work and will help to raise the nuclear share of Argentina’s installed power to 8 per cent, from around 4 per cent currently.
