Leaked Documents Expose Safety Concerns at Egypt's Rosatom Nuclear Plant, Impacting EU Project

Confidential documents have surfaced, alleging serious safety and construction deficiencies at Egypt's El Dabaa nuclear power plant, a project managed by Russia's state nuclear corporation, Rosatom. The revelations raise concerns, particularly as the same reactor technology is slated for use in Hungary's Paks II project, a significant energy initiative within the European Union.

According to reports based on these leaked documents, Egyptian authorities had repeatedly alerted Rosatom to shortcomings in multiple reactor units. These warnings reportedly included violations of safety regulations and significant organizational problems at the construction site. One document even suggests intentional negligence by a project manager.

The leaked materials, obtained by Politico from an anonymous intelligence official, include a confidential letter from Egypt's Nuclear Power Plants Authority dated June 4th. This letter reportedly details recurring serious defects in concrete structures, such as voids behind metal cladding on the fourth block and issues with foundation slabs on the first three blocks, requiring a year-long repair. Egyptian officials also accused Rosatom of employing deceptive tactics, presenting fictitious work to falsely claim over 50% completion.

Further internal Rosatom documents reportedly corroborate delays and engineering challenges. The Egyptian side claims that site inspections reveal a starkly different reality, with main structures still in the underground construction phase. Beyond construction, the documents highlight numerous safety incidents on-site, including alleged alcohol consumption by workers, the use of forged passes for unauthorized entry, and the unauthorized sharing of site photos and videos on social media. A particularly serious incident involved a worker's severe injury, which Egyptian authorities claim was covertly handled to conceal the event, constituting a "serious disregard for human welfare and professional responsibility."

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Takvo ponašanje predstavlja ozbiljno zanemarivanje ljudske dobrobiti i profesionalne odgovornosti te grubo kršenje propisa o sigurnosti na radu, kulture nuklearne sigurnosti i obveze prijavljivanja incidenata.