US authorises transactions with Russian banks for Hungary nuclear plant project

The United States has issued a general licence authorising certain transactions with sanctioned Russian banks for Hungary’s Paks II civil nuclear power plant project, the Treasury Department announced.

General Licence 132 permits transactions involving 12 US-sanctioned Russian banks, including Gazprombank Joint Stock Company, VTB Bank Public Joint Stock Company, Public Joint Stock Company Sberbank of Russia, Joint Stock Company Alfa-Bank, and the Central Bank of the Russian Federation, according to the Office of Foreign Assets Control.

The licence applies to all transactions prohibited by Executive Order 14024 involving the Paks II project in Hungary, including Paks II Nuclear Power Plant Private Limited Company or any successor project to Paks II. The licence also covers any entity in which one or more of the listed banks own, directly or indirectly, a 50% or greater interest.

The authorisation follows Hungary’s signing of a nuclear cooperation deal with the United States under which Hungary will purchase American nuclear fuel and technology to store spent fuel.

The Paks nuclear plant is Hungary’s only nuclear power station. The Paks II project is designed to expand the plant and is being built by Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom.

The European Court of Justice ruled in September that EU aid for the project had breached EU public procurement laws.