-----Original Message----- From: Christiana Maria Mauro <[email address]> Sent: Tuesday, May 15, 2018 4:26 PM To: ENV ACCESS DOCUMENTS <[email address]> Subject: access to documents request - Paks II infringements inter-service consultations Dear DG Environment, On matters related to the construction of the Paks II nuclear reactors and radioactive waste storage facilities the European Commission recently closed two infringement proceedings against Hungary. One investigation by DG GROW examined whether the direct awarding of a contract to a Russian state company was compatible with EU public procurement law.1 Separately, DG COMP initiated a case to determine whether or not the government's financial support of the Paks II project constituted state aid.2 An understanding of the potential environmental hazards of any nuclear facility is of crucial interest to the public; it is vital for independent experts to be given access to the evidence used to evaluate the "technical exclusivity" exception in the former case and any concerns expressed by this Directorate-General in the latter. The Commission concluded that the public procurement exception invoked by Hungary was justified "taking into account the continuous improvement of nuclear safety following the Fukushima disaster," but has denied requests to make the basis of these safety considerations public.3 Under the right of access to documents established in Regulation 1049/2001, and under the right of access to documents guaranteed in the Aarhus Regulation, we are requesting documents containing the following: 1. All documents addressing potential environmental emissions or other environmental matters related to the Paks II project, the safety and reliability of the VVER reactor design and any reports indicating whether or not the technical and safety requirements of the project could only have been met by one company alone. 2. Along with the agendas of public officials´ engagements, we request access to the lists of inter-service consultations, meetings, minutes of meetings and identification of the meetings' participants, along with staff memos and documents justifying opinions and conclusions. 3. Our request covers internal consultations during the preparatory and formal phases of both proceedings; it also covers complete documents and extends to the authors of submissions and declarations of conflicts of interests. In addition to opinions submitted over the course of the infringement proceedings, we are also interested in all DG ENV assessments pertaining to the Hungarian government's 2017 adoption of measures effecting the ability to enforce nuclear safety measures and legal analyses of the environmental license granted for the project.4 The need for the transparency of reports gauging the safety of nuclear constructions and potential nuclear emissions related to the Hungarian government's controversial project is particularly urgent, as construction has already begun despite widespread concerns and regular denials of access to documents of public interest. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. Yours sincerely, Christiana Maria Mauro and Nuclear Transparency Watch 1 NIF 2015/4231 2 SA.38454 (2015/C) 3 www.euobserver.com/energy/139183 4 Among others, Greenpeace has argued that in “allowing massive subsidies for a project backed by a government that openly challenges the importance of independent oversight for nuclear safety” the Commission had been irresponsible in accepting Hungary's state aid justification. See: www.euractiv.com/section/energy/news/hungary-wins-final-eu-approval-for-russian-built-nuclear-plant; www.energiaklub.hu/en/news/the-environmental-license-for-the-paks-ii-project-is-unlawful-and-unfounded-4031 ------------------------------------------------------------------- This is a request for access to information under Article 15 of the TFEU and, where applicable, Regulation 1049/2001 which has been sent via the AsktheEU.org website. Please kindly use this email address for all replies to this request: [email address] If [email address] is the wrong address for information requests to Environment, please tell the AsktheEU.org team on email [email address] This message and all replies from Environment will be published on the AsktheEU.org website. For more information see our dedicated page for EU public officials at https://www.asktheeu.org/en/help/officers -------------------------------------------------------------------