The Bulgarian government has decided to formally cancel the Belene nuclear power plant new-build project, bringing to an end years of uncertainty and policy changes stretching back decades.

An official statement said the council of ministers abolished on Wednesday (11 October) a 2018 decision which awarded the two-unit Belene project the status of “national importance” and gave the greenlight for attracting investors.

The government tasked Bulgaria’s energy ministry with taking steps to terminate all investor procedures announced by state-owned energy company NEK and to notify candidates who had submitted formal biding offers.