“Government to discuss various channels to resolve dispute”
“Close consultation under the strong ROK-US alliance”
“Agreement on the need for cooperation across energy sectors, including nuclear power plants”
Regarding the report on the 24th that an American company (Westinghouse), which transferred various nuclear power plant technologies to Korea, is claiming rights to the original technologies, which is expected to have a negative impact on the export of nuclear power plants to the Czech Republic, the Office of the President stated, “We are in close consultation with the U.S. under the strong ROK-U.S. alliance.”
An official from the Blue House said on the same day, “The government is discussing with the U.S. government through various channels to support an amicable resolution of the dispute between the nuclear power companies of the two countries.”
He continued, “We plan to continue to consult closely with the U.S. under the strong Korea-U.S. alliance to ensure that there are no disruptions in future Czech nuclear power plant exports.”
He added, “There is a growing consensus between the governments of Korea and the United States that there is a great need for cooperation on all areas of energy, including nuclear power, renewable energy, and hydrogen.”
Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power was selected as the preferred negotiating partner for the 24 trillion won Czech nuclear power plant project last month, and is currently in the final stages of work toward the main contract scheduled for March of next year.
However, it has been reported that the US company Westinghouse filed a lawsuit in a US court citing intellectual property rights issues, which has caused disruption in negotiations between the Korean and Czech governments.
Westinghouse claims that the Korean nuclear power plant infringes on its core technology and that Korea needs permission from the U.S. government to export nuclear power plants.
Westinghouse is a company that has participated in domestic nuclear power plant projects since the construction of Kori Unit 1 and has transferred various nuclear power plant technologies to Korea.
Of the 28 nuclear power plants built in Korea, 18 are of the Westinghouse series. Most of the nuclear power plants for export are based on the Westinghouse model, so they are claiming the rights to the original technology.
According to the guidelines of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), which was formed in 1978, when exporting nuclear power plants overseas, our country must obtain the consent of Westinghouse, the U.S. company that holds the original technology, and go through export control procedures of the U.S. Department of Energy.
Above all, Westinghouse has the authority to report exports of Korean nuclear power plants to the U.S. Department of Energy, so if Westinghouse delays reporting itself, it is likely that there will be significant disruptions to the final contract.
Due to this issue, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy are also known to have visited the United States and are continuing discussions by meeting with Westinghouse and the U.S. Department of Energy officials, respectively.
However, Hanwha Solutions claims that although it received assistance from Westinghouse in the early stages of reactor development, the APR1400, which is currently being exported, is a model that it developed independently and is therefore not subject to U.S. export controls.
The government and Hanwha Solutions plan to continue talks and do their best to reach an amicable agreement as there is still time left until the formal contract deadline.
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2024-08-25 02:22:36