COUNTRY PAVILLIONS | WNE2025 Slovenia: Life extension and new build plans crystalise
Slovenia intends to extend the operating life of Krško until at least 2043 while also exploring new nuclear construction
that both designs would be suitable for the Krško site. Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power had been involved in earlier discussions but decided not to proceed in February based on “an assessment of the current business environment and a change in strategic business priorities”. A final investment decision on JEK 2 is expected
Above: Slovenia is considering construction of a new nuclear power plant adjacent to Krško, which is located about 40 km north-west of Croatia’s capital Zagreb. Source: GEN Energija
Slovenia is home to a single 696 MWe Westinghouse-designed pressurised water reactor at the Krško nuclear power plant. The reactor, which has been in commercial operation since 1983, is jointly owned by Slovenia’s GEN Energija and Croatia’s Hrvatska elektroprivreda. Krško generated 5.55 TWh of electricity in 2024, equivalent to around 35% of Slovenia’s total electricity production. The plant covers about 20% of Slovenia’s electricity requirements and 16% of Croatia’s needs. Krško won a 20-year licence extension in January 2023, authorising it to operate until 2043, subject to an interim safety assessment in 2033. An extensive upgrade programme was started at Krško in
2013 to support long-term operations, including turbine and switchyard upgrades, as well as construction of a new emergency control room. It also involved construction of a dry spent fuel storage facility by Holtec, which started operating in 2023. Further works are planned, with an upgrade of the process computer system and modernisation of safety-related water intake systems among 20 modifications planned in this year’s outage. In May, an International Atomic Energy
Agency team of experts completed a peer review of long-term operational safety at Krško, highlighting several areas of best practice making suggestions to further improve safe long term operation (LTO) at the plant. NEK is also exploring the feasibility of extending Krško’s operating lifetime beyond 60 years. Alongside its life extension plans, Slovenia’s government is proposing to build a second 2400 MWe nuclear power plant adjacent to Krško, known as the JEK 2 project. In September, GEN Energija published technical feasibility studies for EDF’s EPR and Westinghouse’s AP1000 reactors, which found
by 2028, with construction slated to begin in 2032. A public consultation was launched in June 2025, starting the planning process. Prime Minister Robert Golob intends to hold a referendum on new nuclear in Slovenia before the final decision is taken on the project. A nationwide referendum was initially due to be held in Slovenia in November 2024, but was cancelled just a few days before the vote was planned. Slovenia is also considering small modular
reactors. Klemen Dragaš, director of asset management and projects at grid-operator ELES, told a roundtable hosted by the British-Slovenian
Chamber of Commerce in March that Slovenia has identified six potential sites where the grid is strong enough to integrate SMRs, making them an option alongside larger nuclear plants. GEN Energija, a member of the European Industrial Alliance
on Small Modular Reactors, is monitoring the development of SMR technologies, while looking to form strategic partnerships, support research and conduct studies to assess the feasibility of the technology for Slovenia. Meanwhile, neighbouring Croatia is considering building
SMR units of its own. In February, the Ministry of Economy established a nuclear energy working group tasked with developing a legislative framework for nuclear energy, laying the groundwork for establishment of an independent nuclear regulator and studying potential locations for nuclear power deployment in the country.
Above: The Krško Nuclear Power Plant in Slovenia features a single 696 MWe Westinghouse-designed PWR. Source: NEK
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