South Korea has announced an emergency management system to prevent delays to its $17.5 billion nuclear power plant project in the Czech Republic after contract negotiations with a domestic construction consortium collapsed, Yonhap News Agency reported on Monday.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources said the government would devise measures to keep the Dukovany project on schedule and prevent similar contractual setbacks.
The move follows a decision by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP) last week to terminate negotiations with a consortium comprising Daewoo Engineering & Construction and Doosan Enerbility after the parties failed to agree on key contract terms.
The ministry was scheduled to hold its first emergency meeting on Monday to discuss follow-up measures.
KHNP, South Korea’s state-run nuclear power operator, will launch a new tender to select a construction contractor, aiming to sign an agreement by July 2027.
Construction is scheduled to begin in November 2027.
“The minister and vice minister will personally review key project issues every week and take necessary measures for the time being,” industry minister Kim Jung-kwan said.
The project involves building two 1,000-megawatt APR1000 nuclear reactors at Dukovany.
A KHNP-led South Korean consortium secured the project last year and subsequently entered negotiations with the Daewoo-Doosan consortium designated to undertake construction.
