Korea, Britain in talks over nuclear power plant construction project

Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) headquarters in Naju, South Jeolla Province / Courtesy of KEPCO

State utility Korea Electric Power (KEPCO) said Tuesday it has been in talks with Britain over the latter's plan to build nuclear power stations.

Director-level officials of KEPCO visited Britain earlier this month and met with officials there to discuss the nuclear power plant construction plan, according to KEPCO.

"We will analyze its profitability and other values before making a decision on participation," a KEPCO official said.

The Daily Telegraph, a British newspaper, reported Monday that British Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng met with KEPCO officials to discuss Korea's investment in the nuclear industry there.

But KEPCO officials said the recent meeting was more like a working-level one, as the envisioned project is still in its early stages.

Britain seeks to boost its energy security, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine has had an impact on energy supplies in Europe. Russia's state-owned gas producer Gazprom has cut off gas supplies to Poland and Bulgaria, as the countries refused to pay for shipments in rubles.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants up to eight new nuclear reactors to be built in his country by 2050 to supply up to a quarter of projected electricity demand, according to the Daily Telegraph.

In March, Korean President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol and the British prime minister vowed to deepen digital, industrial and military cooperation, as well as make joint efforts to denuclearize North Korea, during telephone talks.

Yoon has vowed to scrap a nuclear phase-out policy and make the country a powerhouse in nuclear power generation.

In 2009, a KEPCO-led consortium won a $20 billion contract to build four nuclear reactors in Barakah, 270 kilometers west of Abu Dhabi, marking Korea's first export of a locally developed commercial atomic power plant.

In March, the United Arab Emirates started commercial operation of the second unit of the Barakah nuclear power plant ― the first unit began operation in April 2021. (Yonhap)

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