EDF has established a global advisory board for investments. Is Serbia one of the 'beneficiaries'?

At the Paris summit held yesterday and the day before yesterday, EDF launched FINABe (Financing and Investing in Nuclear – Advisory Board), a new advisory body that brings together leading global banking and investment institutions. The aim of this board is to bridge the gap between ambitious energy plans and the reality of the capital markets, facilitating the financing of new nuclear projects around the world. Perhaps we don't even need to add: Serbia is a potential user of this service 

In the work of the board, financial leaders such as BNP Paribas, HSBC, Crédit Agricole CIB, Royal Bank of Canada and ABN AMRO participate, and we interpret their presence as a signal of a climate shift in the financial sector, which nuclear energy is finally starting to recognize as crucial for energy sovereignty and decarbonization, despite high upfront costs.

Clod Laruel, EDF’s Chief Financial Officer, was clear: “For many countries considering new nuclear programs, securing credible financial solutions is now as critical as choosing the right technology.”

Significance for Serbia and countries stepping onto the nuclear path

Thus it is stated that EDF plans to leverage the experience of its subsidiaries Framatome and Arabelle Solutions to help clients develop financially sustainable (and we have found that in financial jargon this is now called “bankable”) models. FINABe will work on standardizing financial mechanisms that would support both large-power reactors and small modular reactors (SMRs), that is, as planned—though not entirely successfully—standardizing reactor designs, and there is also a plan to standardize the financial backbone which should enable and potentially reduce EDF’s projects.

And, as we said at the outset, the first nuclear power plant in Serbia is potentially one of such projects: currently, to add to that, EDF has lost the tender for a project in the Czech Republic while in Slovenia EDF is being considered as one of the potential partners for the JEK2 project, if, of course, the decision is confirmed at the announced referendum – which is expected. As we also noted yesterday, the media are already starting to speculate about a price of ten billion euros, so we will devote ourselves to this topic a bit more persistently in the coming days.