SpaceWar.com - Your World At War
Czech body halts nuclear deal after EDF, Westinghouse cry foul
Prague, Oct 30 (AFP) Oct 30, 2024
The Czech antitrust watchdog said Wednesday it temporarily blocked the Czech Republic from signing a nuclear deal with South Korea's KHNP worth billions of dollars.

KHNP's victory in a tender to build two nuclear units in the Czech Republic was contested by two failed bidders, France's EDF and the US's Westinghouse.

KHNP beat EDF to win the tender in July, after Westinghouse's bid was ruled out over flaws in January, with both groups appealing the result the following month.

"We have complied with EDF's and Westinghouse's proposals and issued preemptive decisions," Czech competition office (UOHS) spokesman Martin Svanda told AFP.

He added the move would give the UOHS time to assess the appeals, and that it does not "suggest in any way how the office will decide in the matter".

The UOHS would not be able to decide once the contract has been signed, said Svanda.

Westinghouse has accused KHNP of using its technology without authorisation in its APR1000 and APR1400 reactors.

Visiting Prague in September, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol suggested KHNP might hand a part of the deal to Westinghouse, as it did in the United Arab Emirates in the past.

EDF said earlier it was seeking "to ensure that the tender process adheres to the principles of fair trade and transparency, notably in a European context."

The Czech state-controlled power group CEZ runs two nuclear plants -- Temelin and Dukovany, both in the south of the country -- which make up around 30 percent of total Czech electricity output.

With the two new units and small modular reactors due to be built by 2050, nuclear energy is expected to account for 50 percent of the Czech energy mix as the EU member of 10.9 million people is shifting from burning fossil fuels to greener technologies.

KHNP has offered to build the two new units for around 200 billion Czech koruna ($8.5 billion) each.

Prague expects to finalise the deal with KHNP by March 2025, with construction to begin in 2029 and the first new reactor launched in trial operation in 2036.

frj/mmp/cw

TOSHIBA

CEZ


ADVERTISEMENT




Space News from SpaceDaily.com
Europe dispatches Proba-3 satellites to India for December eclipse mission
NASA's SPHEREx to Map the Universe in Unprecedented Detail with Infrared Colors
NASA to launch innovative solar coronagraph to Space Station

24/7 Energy News Coverage
Hydrogen: A Key Element for Sustainable Aviation
CSIRO facility launches flexible solar technology for broad real-world use
Aerodata earns EASA certification for GPS anti-jamming and anti-spoofing tech

Military Space News, Nuclear Weapons, Missile Defense
North Korea says new Hwasong-19 ICBM has 'matchless' nuclear attack capability
Japan and EU announce new defence pact
Zelensky says Ukraine needs to use long-range missiles in Russia in face of N.Korean troop presence

24/7 News Coverage
Making agriculture more resilient to climate change
Smart-Connect advances space tech for disaster response solutions
SNOWWI completes successful airborne tests for NASA snow measuring program



All rights reserved. Copyright Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.