Starting overseas nuclear order activities in the real earnest
By Special Feature Editors Lee Sam-sun, Richard Park
President and CEO Kim Dong-chul of Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) visited and inspected the construction site of the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), where all units (units 1-4) are scheduled to be operational on Nov. 16, 2023 as the first step toward full-scale site management for overseas nuclear power plant exports.
KEPCO is participating in the project as the main contractor and joint venturer for the construction of the four units of the Barak Atomic Power Plant in the UAE.
CEO Kim Dong-chul inspected Units 1, 2 and 3, which are in stable commercial operation, and especially the fuel-loading preparation status of Unit 4, which completed its construction, and started operation in May.
Units 1, 2 and 3 have been in commercial operation since April 2021 with a gap of less than a year between each year, achieving an exceptionally successful record among nuclear power plant builders in all parts of the world.
In addition, Unit 4, the final unit, received an operating license on Nov. 17, 2023, during President Kim Dong-chul's visit to the Barakah site, and is preparing to load fuel for operation in 2024.
Following the inspection of the construction site, President Kim encouraged the workers at the Barakah site, including the heads of the partner companies, for their hard work put in and called on all employees to take great pride in the world's largest nuclear power plant construction project, in which four units are being built simultaneously, and to do their best to complete the project successfully.
On the same day, CEO Kim also visited and inspected the construction site of the HVDC Submarine Transmission Network that KEPCO is carrying out in the UAE.
The project, which KEPCO, together with Kyushu Electric Power Company and EDF, won in December 2021 and started in September 2022, is currently under construction and will supply clean energy produced by the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant to offshore oil0drilling facilities in the UAE through high voltage direct current transmission (HVDC).
While inspecting the site, President Kim Dong-chul requested the KEPCO members to successfully execute this project as a high strategic value project for Team Korea, with Samsung SDI in charge of construction, to build a foundation for winning subsequent grid projects.
On November 17, President Kim Dong-chul met with His Highness Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Ruler of Abu Dhabi, and Mr. Mohamed Al Hammadi, President of the Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC), to discuss ways to continue cooperation between Korea and the UAE in the nuclear energy sector.
During the meeting, President Kim said, "We will continue to cooperate with the ENEC so that the commercial operation of Unit 4 can begin smoothly, and we will do our best to achieve new results in the new nuclear power plant market in the Middle East and Europe by utilizing the successful experience of the UAE nuclear power plant as a great asset."
Meanwhile, CEO Kim will continue his on-site management activities until November 24 when he will travel to the United Kingdom, a potential nuclear power plant importing country, following the UAE.