German utility RWE AG's (RWE.XE) chief executive said Thursday he expects a decision in 2011 on whether a nuclear power plant will be built in Cernavoda, southeastern Romania .

"We expect a final investment decision next year," Juergen Grossmann told shareholders at RWE's annual general meeting in Essen .

The Cernavoda nuclear reactor project is led by Romanian state-controlled Nuclearelectrica, which controls 51% of a joint venture. Its partners include ArcelorMittal (MT), Czech utility CEZ AS (BAACEZ.PR), Electrabel of Belgium, Enel SpA (ENEL.MI) of Italy, Iberdrola SA (IBE.MC) of Spain and RWE.

RWE owns around 9% in the project, which is estimated to cost about EUR4 billion.

Asked whether a nuclear reactor in Cernavoda would be safe to operate due to a potential earthquake hazard, Grossmann said that risk would be "controllable".

He added that the Romanian energy market is an "attractive market" in which RWE wants to become active.

RWE is Europe 's largest emitter of carbon dioxide and has said it considers nuclear energy part of its strategy to improve its carbon footprint.

The company is also pursuing new-build nuclear projects in the U.K. in a joint venture with German peer E.ON AG (EOAN.XE).

Last year RWE pulled out of a similar project in Bulgaria citing financing problems that its local partner, Bulgaria 's state-owned National Electricity Co., or NEK, had encountered.
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