Seoul: South Korea's state-run Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) announced that negotiations with the Czech Republic's energy company for a nuclear power plant construction project are nearing finalization and are expected to conclude later this month. "We are in the final stage of the negotiations with the Czech client and are now fine-tuning details at a reasonable level," KHNP stated. "We are planning to conclude the talks within March and set the date for signing after considering other factors, including internal procedures and government reporting."
According to Yonhap News Agency, KHNP has been in discussions with the Czech Republic's Elektrarna Dukovany II (EDU II) since a KHNP-led South Korean consortium was chosen as the preferred bidder in July 2024 to build two reactors at the Dukovany power plant. The two sides have reportedly agreed on key points, such as the total project cost, but are still negotiating specific issues, including the percentage of localization throughout the construction process.
If the deal is finalized, it would represent South Korea's first overseas nuclear power plant project since KHNP secured the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant contract in the United Arab Emirates in 2009. The agreement is estimated to be worth 24 trillion won (US$16.7 billion).
A significant hurdle was cleared in January when KHNP settled an intellectual property dispute with U.S.-based Westinghouse. Westinghouse had previously alleged that the South Korean firm infringed on its intellectual property, but the resolution of this dispute has paved the way for the successful signing of the Czech project.