Full excavation of the soil for the Paks II expansion project has begun: machines will work at a depth of 23 metres

The Paks expansion project has reached another milestone, as soil stabilisation and diaphragm wall construction under the future fifth nuclear power plant unit has been completed, and full soil excavation has now begun, announced Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, on Wednesday in New York. The sub-project that has now been launched is being carried out by Duna Aszfalt Zrt..

As a precursor to the current works, the construction of the working pits for the two new blocks was carried out for the first time in 2022 and 2023, also by Duna Aszfalt, down to groundwater level, to a depth of 5 metres. Now the construction of the diaphragm wall and soil consolidation under the future fifth reactor unit has been completed, allowing the start of full soil excavation at Paks, another milestone.

The next step will be the first concrete

His words revealed:

With full excavation, the soil will be removed to a depth of 23 metres beneath the future blocks, which is about the height of a ten-storey building. "In practice, this means that two million cubic metres of soil will be excavated on top of the one and a half million cubic metres of soil that have been excavated so far," he said. "As soon as we are done with the full excavation, the so-called first concrete pour will take place. Our goal is to have this done before the end of this year."

- he added.

The Minister underlined that this is a key step for the investment, because according to the standards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the first concrete pour is the first concrete pour for a nuclear power plant under construction or under construction.

Over a thousand people working on the ground

Szijjártó recalled that although the Paks II expansion is being carried out by the Russian prime contractor, the project also involves partners from the US, Germany, France, Switzerland and Austria. "More than a thousand people are already working on site and this number will increase significantly in the coming period," he added.

"The cooperation is unhindered and excellent, and all the Hungarian companies that have been involved in the preparation of the construction of the nuclear power plant have worked to the public satisfaction"

- said.