Bulgaria secures Citi to help finance nuclear expansion at Kozloduy site

(Reuters) -Bulgaria has secured a partnership with U.S. bank Citi to finance the construction of nuclear power units at Kozloduy NPP, marking the country's largest energy project in decades, its energy ministry said on Wednesday.

Energy Minister Zhecho Stankov held final talks in New York with Citi's leadership, agreeing on financing for units 7 and 8 at the Bulgarian nuclear site that will use Westinghouse's AP1000 technology.

"The agreement with Citi is an essential step for the successful implementation of the government's priority energy project, ensuring energy independence and long-term stability," Stankov said during the meeting with Stephanie von Friedeburg, Citi's Global Director of Public Sector Banking.

For Citi, serving as exclusive coordinator and arranger of export credit, the deal represents its largest nuclear financing project in Central and Eastern Europe, according to the ministry statement.

It did not specify the exact amount of financing agreed and Citi was not immediately available for comment to Reuters.

Kozloduy is Bulgaria's only nuclear power plant and dates back to the 1970s. It has two 1,000 megawatts Soviet-made reactors in operation. Four others were closed by 2007.

Under the expansion plans, unit 7 would be ready by 2033 and unit 8 would follow at a later stage.

South Korea's Hyundai Engineering & Construction received parliamentary approval in Bulgaria in February to advance discussions on building two nuclear reactors with a combined capacity of 2,300 MW.

(Reporting by Antonis Pothitos; Editing by Barbara Lewis)