Synthos investing in nuclear power plant in Poland

Patnow, Poland – Two polish entrepreneurs Zygmunt Solorz and Micha? So?owow, majority shareholder in synthetic rubber manufacturer Synthos, have joined forces to build a nuclear power plant in Patnow.

To be set up in the premises of privately owned energy producer ZE PAK, the power plant will employ ‘small modular reactors’ (SMR) technology, said Synthos in a recent statement without giving further financial details.

As part of the deal, Solorz-owned ZE PAK will aim to invest in four to six SMR-type reactors, each with a capacity to produce 300 MW of energy.

In its statement, Synthos said it will play two roles in this project: as an investor and technology provider.

The parties involved will set up a joint venture which is expected to employ GEH BWRX-300 reactors by GEH SMR Technologies Canada or ‘other optimal American SMR technologies,’ Synthos added.

In 2019 Synthos and GEH singed an agreement for the potential deployment for the BWRX-300 in Poland. A yea later, the two sides signed a strategic agreement to further advance the collaboration.

The investment follows ZE PAK’s decision last year to exit from coal-fired power generation by 2030.

The Patnow power plant currently operates on lignite from a nearby opencast mine.

Commenting on the investment, So?owow said Poland was “the manufacturing hub of Europe,” and needed 'emission-free and stable sources of energy.'

“If we want to continue developing at a fast pace and become a more affluent society, and attract further foreign investment to us, we must have access to attractively priced energy,” the entrepreneur added. 

The Polish government has indicated Patnow as a location for its ‘nuclear power programme’.

The SMR plants, according to Piotr Wo?ny, CEO of ZE PAK, will not replace the state's large-scale power generation.

“They may be an excellent supplement to it [state programme] and gradually replace some of the power generated from fossil fuels,” he added.