Serbia Eyes 2035 for Nuclear Construction Start: A €3 Billion Strategic Shift

Serbia’s Minister of Mining and Energy, Dubravka Đedović Handanović, has officially announced that the country must commence construction of its first nuclear power plant before 2035. This move is part of a massive new investment cycle, with 30% of all national investments through 2035 earmarked for the energy sector

Minister estimated the initial capital requirement at €3 billion, emphasizing that nuclear energy is a prerequisite for a clean, secure, and stable baseload power supply. “The world is aiming to triple nuclear capacity by 2050. If we act responsibly and remain committed, we could have our first units online shortly after 2040,” Đedović Handanović stated.

The exact capacity – ranging from 1,000 to 1,650 megawatts – will depend on the technology selection process, which is yet to be finalized. In parallel, the government is establishing a National Body for Nuclear Program Development to oversee the transition.

Focus on “Human Infrastructure”

Crucially, the Minister highlighted that the project’s success hinges not just on financing, but on people. She called for a nationwide effort to strengthen the workforce, including:

• Reversing brain drain: Bringing Serbian nuclear experts back from abroad.
• Educational investment: Training a new generation of engineers, mechanics, and construction specialists.
• Institutional strengthening: Building robust regulatory and technical institutions to manage the future nuclear fleet.

The strategy also includes a major overhaul of the national grid to ensure that this new baseload power can be reliably delivered to citizens, especially in regions currently prone to weather-related outages. 

However, we remind that the process of adopting nuclear energy in Serbia has been very opaque and that some basic documents have not yet been published.