The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on July 17 said Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power was named the preferred bidder to build at least two nuclear power plants in the Czech Republic near the village of Dukovany (pictured)

By Xu Aiying

Photos = Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power

The Czech Republic has named Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) the preferred bidder to build up to four nuclear reactors in the Eastern European country.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy on July 17 said the contract is Korea's largest deal for such plants in 15 years since the Barakah project in the United Arab Emirates.

The latest deal is for the construction of up to four plants -- two each in Dukovany (Units 5 and 6) and Temelin (Units 3 and 4) -- as the largest investment project in Czech history. 

The latest announcement confirmed KNHP's order to build a second plant near the village of Dukovany and the company's right to independently negotiate with the Czech contractor Elektrarna Dukovany II (EDU II). 

The Czech side estimated the cost at KRW 12 trillion for one reactor and KRW 24 trillion for two. The final amount will come after negotiations with KHNP. 

To build the large-scale 1,000-megawatt plants, KHNP formed the consortium Team Korea with domestic companies like KEPCO (Korea Electric Power Corp.) Engineering & Construction (design), Doosan Enerbility (main equipment and construction), and KEPCO Nuclear Fuel to offer all related services like design, buy, build, test and provide nuclear fuel.

Through this deal, Korea has entered the Eastern European market for nuclear plants for the first time since building reactors in the Middle East, the ministry said, proving the global competitiveness of domestic plants and raising the potential for securing more deals later.

President Yoon Suk Yeol hailed the news of the order. "The competitiveness of the Korean nuclear power industry has again received recognition from the global market," he was quoted as saying in a briefing by Director of National Policy Sung Tae-yoon.

KHNP President & CEO Whang Joo-ho (third from left in front row) on April 29 poses for photos with officials after submitting his company's final bid for the nuclear reactor project at EDU II headquarters in the Czech city of Dukovany.