KHNP competes with the US and Russia over Czech nuclear power plant orders…weakness in Korea’s post-nuclear power plant policy

Input 2021.03.10 17:03 | Revision 2021.03.10 17:43

As the Czech government begins bidding for the Dukobani nuclear power plant as early as this month, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, which is leading the export of Korean nuclear power plants, is expected to rise to the’Export Test Bench’. The last time Korea exported nuclear power plants was the Baraka nuclear power plant (4th unit) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2009. Fierce competition is expected as nuclear power plants such as the United States, France, and Russia will participate in the order for the Czech nuclear power plant.

The Czech Nuclear Safety Administration issued a site license approving the construction of two new reactors on the site of the Dukovany nuclear power plant after 12 months of examination, the World Nuclear Association (WNN) reported on the 9th (local time). Accordingly, the Czech government will be able to issue a bidding guide (RFP) for the nuclear power plant construction project, which has been delayed several times.

The Czech Republic is pursuing a project to construct one 1000 to 1200 MW (megawatt) nuclear power plant in the Dukobani region with the aim of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The project cost alone is 8 trillion won. Construction starts in 2029, and operation is aimed at as early as 2035. Czech Prime Minister Andrei Babisi has been promoting the construction of nuclear power plants, saying, “Without nuclear power, a low-carbon energy source, the climate goal set by the European Union cannot be achieved.”

In the order match, a four-out match is expected between South Korea and the US Westinghouse, France EDF, and Russia Rosatom. In the beginning, the Czech Republic considered China as well, but it was ruled out due to strong opposition over the threat of energy security. Czech security authorities have argued that Russia should be excluded from a few weeks ago for the same reason, but German public broadcaster Deutsche Bell said it is highly likely not to ban participation in the bid because the Czech government has been in close ties with Russia. The Czech Republic has maintained close diplomatic relations, such as requesting Russia to supply vaccines.

KHNP was in June of last year Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction (034020), Daewoo E&C (047040), Korea Electric Power Technology, KEPCO Fuel, etc., have formed an organization dedicated to bidding for’Team Korea’ to prepare for an order battle in the Czech Republic. Jeong Jae-hoon, President Han Su-won, is focusing his efforts on winning orders, including visiting the Czech Republic in person during the corona crisis last year and selling nuclear power plants. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy also launched the’Nuclear Power Export Advisory Committee’ on the 4th to support exports. After the nuclear power plant policy has eliminated domestic work, nuclear power plant parts makers are in danger of going bankrupt, so they decided to seek a way out abroad.

The government and KHNP are confident that they have gained an advantage in the order before, thanks to local sales of nuclear power plants, but competition with the United States is unlikely to be easy. This is because the US, which declared the’revival of the nuclear power industry’, has been actively exporting nuclear power plants in recent years. In the’Nuclear Power Strategy Vision’ announced in January of this year, the US announced that it will rebuild the nuclear power plant industry by extending the lifespan of existing nuclear power plants, developing next-generation nuclear power plants, and expanding the nuclear power plant supply chain. Thanks to the government’s policy to support nuclear power plants, the US is expanding its presence in the global market by spurring exports of nuclear power plants to Poland and Romania as well as the Czech Republic. This is in contrast to the situation in Korea where the competitiveness of the nuclear power industry is deteriorating due to the post-nuclear policy.

In the case of the nuclear power plant business, not only the technological prowess of companies but also the diplomatic capacity of the country affects, and some analyzes suggest that the United States can exert greater power in this respect. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) diagnosed that the recent decision by the Czech government to exclude China from receiving orders for the Dukobani nuclear power plant project was also the result of the US government’s breath of restraining China.

In the nuclear power plant industry, the opinion that it is difficult to come up with an optimistic outlook on the possibility of winning orders in Korea is dominant. An official in the domestic nuclear power industry said, “Our country is not in good shape because it says that it will export nuclear power while pursuing a nuclear power plant policy in Korea,” he said. It is expected,” he said.

Until now, Russia and China have monopolized orders for new nuclear power plants in emerging markets such as Africa and Southeast Asia. The only hope is that the Czech government is likely to succumb to US and EU pressures and restrict Russia’s participation.

An official from KHNP said, “I will observe the final conclusions of the Czech government and follow the procedure when the bidding guide comes in,” he said. “We will continue to carry out local order-taking activities to achieve good results in Czech Republic.”