Lithuanian's Ignalina plant to buy additional services from Taylor Wessing

The start of the negotiated procedure without publication of a contract notice was announced in the state bulletin Valstybes Žinios on Wednesday.

Daiva Rimašauskaitė, the INPP spokeswoman, told BNS that this would be the fourth time that the plant would buy additional services from Taylor Wessing.

"Things have started moving since the INPP hired Taylor Wessing, who are specialists in English law. All problems of inconsistencies in technical plans have been identified. Today we can see some progress in tackling these problems. The European Commission acknowledges this as well. Today we also see willingness on the part of Nukem to solve project implementation problems and this is the result of Taylor Wessing's work," she said.

The spokeswoman said that every effort was being taken to complete the projects by December 2013. "We expect real results this summer. That is why we need additional services from the lawyers," she said.

The plant has to date signed 20 million litas (EUR 5.8 m) worth of contracts with Taylor Wessing, but has actually spent less on their services so far, Rimašauskaitė said.

Nukem is carrying out two major decommissioning projects at the Ignalina plant: a 123- million-euro solid radioactive waste storage facility complex and a spent fuel storage facility, initially estimated to cost 193 million euros. The projects are running some three to four years behind schedule.