Chair Lewis in Bucharest, Romania to Highlight EXIM’s Nuclear Energy Priorities
Bucharest, Romania – Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) President and Chair Reta Jo Lewis traveled to Bucharest, Romania last week as part of the U.S. delegation to the Summit of the Three Seas Initiative (3SI) and the 3SI Business Forum, led by Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and Assistant Secretary for Energy Resources, Geoffrey Pyatt. While in Bucharest, Chair Lewis met with government leaders, including the Prime Minister of Romania Marcel Ciolacu, Vice Prime Minister of Romania Marian Neacșu, 3SI government leaders and private sector companies to discuss EXIM’s efforts in the nuclear energy sector and ongoing work to support U.S. exporters looking to do business in the region.
“Nuclear energy can play an important role in supporting the global energy transition, and our agency is committed to ensuring that U.S. companies have the financing tools they need to advance critical nuclear projects,” said EXIM President and Chair Reta Jo Lewis. “It was an honor to travel to Romania to continue building upon EXIM’s strong work in this sector and deepen the U.S.-Romania commercial relationship.”
On Tuesday, Chair Lewis met with Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs State Secretary Iulian Fota, where she discussed EXIM’s ongoing work in the country and ways to collaborate to promote joint economic growth. While in Bucharest, she also met with U.S. Ambassador to Romania Kathleen Kavalec to discuss ways EXIM financing can support U.S companies looking to do business in Romania.
On Wednesday, Chair Lewis met with private sector leaders and delivered remarks at an event hosted by AmCham Romania titled U.S. – Romania Economic Forum: Innovation for Prosperity. She then joined the U.S. delegation for a nuclear energy event and SMR simulator tour at Politehnica University Bucharest.
On Thursday, Chair Lewis began the day by meeting with Japan Bank for International Collaboration (JBIC) Governor Nobumitsu Hayashi, where they discussed operationalizing a co-financing agreement that remains in effect and ways to collaborate to advance priority projects, including in the nuclear energy sector. She then met with Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, Vice-Prime Minister Marian Neacșu, and Minister of Finance Marcel Bolos, where they discussed opportunities to collaborate to strengthen the economies of both Romania and the U.S.
Later that afternoon, Chair Lewis met with Romanian Minister of Energy Sebastian-Ioan Burduja, where she highlighted how the agency’s financing tools can help advance priorities in the nuclear energy sector. She also held meetings with Beata Daszyńska-Muzyczka, Chairperson of the 3SI Supervisory Board, and Cosmin Ghita, Chief Executive Officer of Nuclearelectrica.
During COP27 last November, Chair Lewis, alongside Special Presidential Envoy Kerry, President of Romania Klaus Iohannis, Energy Minister Virgil Popescu, and Assistant Secretary Pyatt, announced the issuance of two letters of interest for U.S. exports being used at a nuclear power project in Romania.
Earlier this year, EXIM also issued another letter of interest to Fluor and NuScale totaling $3 billion for a potential small modular reactor project for RoPower in Romania. Letters of interest are nonbinding statements that indicate that EXIM is open for business in the market identified and is willing to consider financing for a given export transaction should an application be submitted.
ABOUT EXIM:
The Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) is the nation’s official export credit agency with the mission of supporting American jobs by facilitating U.S. exports. To advance American competitiveness and assist U.S. businesses as they compete for global sales, EXIM offers financing including export credit insurance, working capital guarantees, loan guarantees, and direct loans. As an independent federal agency, EXIM contributes to U.S. economic growth by supporting tens of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. Since 1992, EXIM has generated more than $9 billion for the U.S. Treasury for repayment of U.S. debt. Learn more at www.exim.gov.
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