KFAED joins Paris conference to mobilize 500 mln Euro for Chernobyl restoration
Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED) took part Monday in an international donor conference in Paris aimed at mobilizing EUR 500 million to restore the New Safe Confinement (NSC) structure at Ukraine’s Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.
Kuwait was represented by KFAED Acting Director-General Rashaid Ali Al-Bader, Director of Operations for Central Asia and Europe Affairs Ahmad Bander Al-Sabah, and Kuwait’s Ambassador to France Abdullah Sulaiman Al-Shaheen.
The conference, organized by Ukraine and France in cooperation with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), seeks to repair the structure and restore its full functionality after it was severely damaged by a drone strike in February 2025.
Addressing the conference, Al-Bader said KFAED had been a longstanding partner in international efforts to strengthen nuclear safety at Chernobyl for nearly four decades. Since 1988, the Fund has provided four grants totaling around USD 15 million to support nuclear safety initiatives at the site.
He said the contributions reflected Kuwait’s commitment to international cooperation and recognition that nuclear safety and environmental protection were shared responsibilities.
Al-Bader reaffirmed the Fund’s readiness to assess the possibility of providing additional financial support, expressing interest in working with the EBRD and other international partners to review the proposed restoration program, its financing needs and implementation arrangements.
Ukraine’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal said his country and the EBRD were advancing the technical preparations needed to restore the structure’s full functionality.
He said preliminary assessments indicated that completing restoration by 2030 was essential to prevent corrosion of the steel structure and ensure the continued operation of its containment and ventilation systems.
French Minister of the Economy, Finance and Industrial, Energy and Digital Sovereignty Roland Lescure said France, as G7 chair and a longstanding donor, had placed the issue high on the international agenda, stressing the need for a coordinated international effort to mobilize funding.
EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso said the conference would present the latest technical assessments and restoration strategy, including timelines and funding requirements, while reviewing existing international commitments and seeking further pledges.
Source: KUNA
