Bechtel-Westinghouse and PEJ Set Main EPC Terms for Polish Nuclear Plant

The Bechtel-Westinghouse consortium and Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe (PEJ) have agreed on the main commercial terms of the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract for Poland’s first nuclear power plant, both parties announced on September 23, 2026. The plant will be built at the Lubiatowo-Kopalino site in the Choczewo commune and will consist of three Westinghouse AP1000 reactors with a combined capacity of 3,750 MWe. First electricity from the plant is expected to flow to the Polish grid in 2036.

The agreement does not finalize the EPC contract. Bechtel described it as a step toward signing the contract, with both parties committed to completing negotiations by the end of 2026. PEJ, the project investor, said in its announcement that the agreed terms and conditions cover the main commercial and legal issues, and that reaching agreement in those areas paves the way for negotiating further specific elements of the contract and its exhibits based on the arrangements reached so far.

“This agreement reflects the momentum we’ve built with PEJ, and it’s a vote of confidence in American nuclear technology and know-how,” said Dena Volovar, President of Bechtel’s Nuclear, Security & Environmental business, in Bechtel’s announcement. Volovar said Bechtel has designed, built, or supported 150 nuclear power plants over 80 years and recently completed the most modern AP1000 units in the United States. She said the company is using modern execution tools to drive efficient delivery, bringing that experience to Poland and building local capability as it goes, and that by the time the plant is running Polish companies and Polish workers will be part of a nuclear industry that can compete for decades.

“PEJ and the Westinghouse-Bechtel consortium have agreed on the main terms of the contract for the construction of the first Polish nuclear power plant, which provides the basis for further, detailed negotiations regarding the remaining terms of cooperation under the EPC Contract,” said Marek Woszczyk, President of Polskie Elektrownie Jądrowe. Woszczyk said the consortium will be responsible for construction of the facility, with the first electricity from the power plant to flow to the Polish grid in 2036.

Site Handover and Permitting

PEJ handed over the project site to Bechtel in August 2026. The second stage of preparatory work is underway at the site, including grading and leveling the site, upgrading drainage systems, and constructing temporary roads to support future development, and in-depth geological surveys are being carried out.

In March 2026, PEJ applied to Poland’s National Atomic Energy Agency (PAA) for a construction license. The investor plans to submit its building-permit application in 2027 and said it is simultaneously preparing documentation for subsequent decisions.

Polish Contracts and Workforce

The project has awarded contracts to Polish companies for key site work, among them Budimex, Doraco, Unihouse, MSA Security and Barg M.B. Gdańsk. Both sides said more contracts with Polish subcontractors are expected soon, and PEJ said the contracting activity supports project delivery on schedule.

Bechtel reported more than PLN 1 billion (USD 250 million) in contracts awarded to Polish companies to date, covering work from site preparation to civil works. The company reported nearly 200 Polish nationals on the project team, with another 100 in the recruitment process, and staff-development agreements with three Polish universities. Bechtel said the contracts bring investment and skilled jobs into Polish communities and the Polish supply chain, and that Polish firms will be positioned to deliver the plant and to compete for nuclear work across the region.

Bechtel said that at Plant Vogtle in the U.S. state of Georgia, it and Westinghouse completed the first new nuclear units built in the United States in more than three decades, and that the second AP1000 unit was built 30 percent more efficiently than the first. The company said it and Westinghouse are applying what they learned at Vogtle, along with the processes and workforce practices behind it, to the Polish project, which it described as bringing together American reactor technology and an American engineering and construction team working with Polish industry.