Serbia is preparing emergency legal amendments to enable the construction of small modular reactors (SMRs), as rising electricity consumption and weakening domestic generation raise concerns at the highest political level. The announcement was made during a government session, where President Aleksandar Vučić warned that the national electricity system is approaching a critical threshold.
Two parallel trends are driving this push. The first is the gradual phase-out of coal-fired power plants, while the second is a sharp rise in electricity demand linked to planned artificial intelligence data centers. At the same time, production at state-owned utility EPS is under growing pressure, leaving limited capacity to absorb additional demand.
Belgrade is now reviewing nuclear proposals from a wide range of international partners. In addition to a non-binding framework agreement with France’s EDF, officials say offers are also being considered from China, Japan, South Korea, the United States (via Westinghouse), and Russia’s Rosatom.
The accelerated approach comes despite the fact that Serbia only lifted its long-standing nuclear moratorium in late 2024 and has yet to establish a comprehensive regulatory framework or build the institutional and technical capacity required for nuclear development. Long-term projections remain far more cautious, with the World Nuclear Association estimating that Serbia’s first 250 MW of nuclear capacity would not come online before 2042.
Observers point to a growing gap between political messaging and engineering reality. The newly emphasized sense of urgency, along with references to rapid legislative changes and imminent negotiations, contrasts sharply with the long timelines typically associated with nuclear projects.
Special attention has focused on the role of AI data centers, now cited as a central justification for the nuclear push. Analysts question whether the primary objective is to ensure energy security for domestic consumers or to meet the electricity needs of large global technology companies. The broad list of potential nuclear partners is also viewed as an effort to balance geopolitical interests, consistent with Serbia’s approach to other major infrastructure projects.
As the debate continues, critics warn that nuclear policy risks being shaped through top-down decisions, rather than transparent planning and public dialogue. Adding to the controversy, much of the detailed reporting on Serbia’s nuclear ambitions is currently coming from foreign media, underscoring the absence of a clear and open national conversation on the issue.