Press: Temelín nuclear power plant expansion to top issues discussed in Nečas-Obama meeting

The tender on the expansion of the Czech Republic’s Temelín nuclear power plant will be the main topic discussed in a meeting between Czech Prime Minister Petr Nečas and US President Barack Obama in Washington on Thursday. According to the Czech news agency, ČTK, America is hoping to reemphasise a strong interest in the contract, worth hundreds of billions of crowns. The US-based firm Westinghouse is competing against two other bidders in the tender. The visit by Mr Nečas to the White House on Thursday could also show new progress in Czech-American ties following the US abandonment of an advance warning radar in the Czech Republic, pursued by the previous administration. Meetings with past Czech prime ministers Mirek Topolánek and Vladimír Špidla were dominated by security issues, ČTK noted, while now economic matters have come to the fore.