Brazil hopes to finish never-ending power plant as attention turns nuclear

Last year, the Brazilian government announced its intention to once again exploit its national uranium reserves, including private players in the mix. Mines and Energy Minister Bento Albuquerque also pledged to turn to public-private partnerships to continue the construction of the notorious Angra 3 nuclear plant, which has now sat unfinished for 36 years.

Work on Angra 3 began in 1984 and there is still no indication when it will be concluded. Since the military dictatorship launched the project it has suffered from many delays, caused by factors ranging from the Chernobyl disaster, a massive currency crisis in the late 1980s, corruption investigations involved in Operation Car Wash—which saw a former president put behind bars—to Brazil’s recent recession.

Deciding on the future of Angra 3 is pivotal for the government’s intentions of privatizing energy company Eletrobras. Eletronuclear—which manages the nuclear power complex—is an entirely state-owned subsidiary.

Works were last stopped in 2015, when the federal government ran out of money to finish the nuclear plant having completed only two-thirds. Maintaining the construction site alone costs the government BRL 3 million every month, and now there is no guarantee it will ever be finished.

In the latest twist to the Angra 3 tale, the Federal Accounts Court—a sort of audit tribunal that monitors public spending—wants the government to prove that...