South Korean officials express confidence about Czech nuclear deal after court puts it on hold

SEOUL – South Korean officials connected Wednesday downplayed a Czech court’s decision to enactment connected clasp an $18 cardinal task for South Korea to physique 2 atomic reactors successful the country, describing it arsenic a impermanent setback and expressing assurance that the woody volition yet proceed.

A South Korean consortium led by the state-run Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power had expected to finalize the woody this week with a subsidiary of CEZ, the Czech Republic’s largest energy supplier. However, a Czech tribunal blocked CEZ from signing the declaration portion it reviews a ailment from French institution EDF, which mislaid the bid to the South Koreans.

South Korean Industry Minister Ahn Dukgeun told reporters successful Prague that the court’s determination would lone hold the signing of the authoritative contract, and that each different procedures would proceed connected schedule, assuming that the woody goes through. He said that the Czech authorities intelligibly didn't expect the court’s determination to intermission the agreement, and that CEZ plans to appeal.

“The Czech authorities did not deliberation of (EDF’s claims) arsenic a large occupation and invited america for the scheduled,” signing ceremony, Ahn said. “It seems that the Czech government’s judgement did not align with the court’s ruling.”

Lee Ju-Ho, South Korea's acting president, said that Seoul would pass intimately with the Czech broadside to guarantee that the woody is finalized quickly.

In July, CEZ selected KHNP implicit EDF arsenic the preferred bidder to physique 2 1,000-megawatt atomic reactors astatine the Dukovany plant. EDF filed a tribunal ailment past week aft the Czech Republic’s contention regulator rejected its entreaty implicit the bidding process.

Before helium was ousted past period implicit an ill-fated martial instrumentality imposition successful December, erstwhile blimpish South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol had pledged to boost the country’s atomic powerfulness exports, arguing that they had suffered nether the erstwhile wide government’s propulsion to trim home reliance connected atomic energy. Yoon’s authorities had acceptable a extremity of exporting 10 atomic powerfulness reactors by 2030.

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