Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Wins '3 Trillion' Won Egypt Nuclear Power Plant Contract... A Triumph After 13 Years

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Wins Eldaba Nuclear Power Plant Contract... Secondary Construction Sector
Total Project Scale Approximately 40 Trillion KRW... KHNP's Share 3 Trillion KRW
Major Domestic Nuclear Companies Also Participating... Project Briefing Session Next Month

A panoramic view of Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Korea's first exported nuclear power plant.
[Photo by Asia Economy DB]

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Lee Junhyung] Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) has finally secured the contract for the second phase of the El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant construction project in Egypt, valued at approximately 3 trillion KRW.

On the 25th, KHNP announced that it signed the contract for the El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant second phase construction project in Cairo, Egypt, with Russia's ASE JSC. ASE JSC is a subsidiary of the Russian state-owned nuclear company Rosatom and the main contractor for the El Dabaa Nuclear Power Plant. KHNP will construct about 80 buildings and structures for the four units of the El Dabaa plant and supply equipment.

The El Dabaa nuclear project is a large-scale initiative to build four 1200MW-class nuclear reactors in the coastal city of El Dabaa, Egypt. Previously, KHNP was selected as the sole negotiation candidate for the second phase of the El Dabaa project, including the turbine building, at the end of last year. The total project scale is $30 billion USD (approximately 40 trillion KRW), with KHNP's share being about 3 trillion KRW.

Through the El Dabaa project, KHNP will achieve exports in the trillion KRW range for the first time in about 13 years. KHNP's overseas nuclear projects had been dormant since winning the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant contract in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in 2009. This was largely due to the impact of the previous administration's nuclear phase-out policy, which damaged international trust in Korean nuclear technology.

Expectations in the nuclear industry are also rising. Domestic nuclear construction and equipment companies plan to participate in the El Dabaa project. KHNP will hold a business briefing session for domestic nuclear companies next month to share key information such as supply items and bidding schedules.

Hwang Juho, President of KHNP, said, "Winning the El Dabaa contract is a result that proves Korea's excellent nuclear construction capabilities and project management skills demonstrated at the Barakah plant. We will do our best to ensure the success of the El Dabaa project, leveraging our experience building nuclear plants in the UAE, which has a similar environment to Egypt."

Meanwhile, the El Dabaa plant held its first concrete pouring ceremony last month, marking the start of construction. The Egyptian government plans to operate the first unit of the El Dabaa plant starting in 2028.