"Even though we don't like certain obligations, we have to meet them," Prime Minister Robert Fico said after the weekly governmental meeting.

The VI nuclear block should be shut down using such technology that "in case of a possible future crisis, when Europe may need help, we should be able to revive the plant," he added.

Slovakia closed one nuclear block at Jaslovske Bohunice at the end of 2006 and is due to switch off the second bloc of the Soviet-designed reactor at the end of December, under commitments to Brussels which paved the way for its 2004 EU entry. The European Union said the reactors were unsafe.

As a result Slovakia, a former power exporter, will have to import around 20 percent of its electricity needs from 2009.

"It's not possible to shut down Jaslovske Bohunice and not to complete construction of Mochovce plant at the same time. It's either one possibility or the other. We managed to launch construction of units 3 and 4 in Mochovce, therefore we become more comfortable in the field of electric energy," Fico said.

The dominant Slovak power producer Slovenske Elektrarne (SE), controlled by Italian power giant Enel, launched the construction of two new units at the Mochovce nuclear power plant in western Slovakia on Monday.

According to the Slovak government, analysis by specialised agencies showed the two blocks were safe and could continue to operate until 2020 or 2025.

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