France is ready to offer a fully integrated service and a multi-stage partnership as Poland prepares to build its first nuclear power plant. France’s state-controlled utility EDF is interested in partnering with Poland at each step of the project from beginning to end according to the energetyka24.com website. It cited the corporation’s Senior Vice President as saying that an upcoming French offer could include government support, financing and the inclusion of Poland in supply chains. The first unit of a new Polish nuclear power plant is expected to be put into operation in 2033, under a long-term energy policy adopted by the government earlier this year.
Source – Polskie Radio
EU’s top diplomat says block cannot stop contested Nord Stream 2 pipeline
One of the EU’s top diplomats has said the bloc does not have the power to stop the contested Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline between Russia and Germany. In a speech during a European Parliament debate on Wednesday, the diplomat also said he opposed US sanctions against companies working on the pipeline. Nord Stream 2, designed to double the capacity of the existing Nord Stream undersea gas pipeline, is expected to send around 55 billion cubic metres of Russian natural gas a year directly to Germany under the Baltic Sea while bypassing the Baltic states, Poland and Ukraine.
Source – Polskie Radio
Poland launches drive to promote COVID-19 shots
The Polish government is launching a campaign encouraging citizens to get COVID-19 shots amid a stepped-up inoculation drive. Mobile information and vaccination points will appear in cities across the country during the upcoming May long weekend. The prime minister’s top aide who is spearheading the country’s inoculation drive, said that anyone aged 36 and above would be able to receive a one-dose Johnson & Johnson shot at a mobile vaccination point. Over 11 million COVID-19 shots have been administered in Poland so far, officials announced on Thursday.
Source – Polskie Radio
Sopot pier extension proving to be controversial
And finally, work has begun at the marina in Sopot to deepen the entrance. Sand is be extracted by suction from the seabed next to the pier and pumped by a pipe to the beach, where it is distributed by excavators and bulldozers. Critics of the work argue that the cost of the works will be high and ongoing and that the city was warned by scientists from the University of Gdańsk that silting of the marina would occur as a result of a phenomenon called the “Tombolo” effect. Works will continue until the end of May and then construction of an extension to the marina will likely begin in June.
Source – Radio Gdańsk
Weather
Today will be a cloudy day with a moderate breeze and temperatures of 10 degrees centigrade (50 degrees Fahrenheit) during the day, dropping to freezing point overnight. Saturday will be a sunnier day with a gentle breeze and temperatures will reach 9 degrees during the day and 5 degrees overnight.
That was the Radio Gdańsk English news and weather.
Martin Caren/ap
