KEPCO Eager to Enter
Chinese Nuclear Power Market
The second Korean-Chinese forum on nuclear power held in Shanghai
Korean Minister of Commerce, Industry and Energy Kim Young-ju and Korea Electric Power Corp. Chairman-CEO Lee Won-gul and Chinese counterparts, including the chief of Commission on Science, Technology and National Defense Industry (COSTIND) participated in the second Korean-Chinese forum on nuclear power held in Shanghai on April 24.
The forum, designed to exchange information on the overall status of the Korean and Chinese nuclear power industries, was held in two years after the inaugural forum was held in Seoul on June 23, 2005, according to an agreement reached on December 2004 between the visiting MOCIE minister and his Chinese counterpart.
The second Korean-Chinese forum on nuclear power, hosted by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy and COSTIND, offered in-dept discussions on the development of the Korean and Chinese nuclear power industries. It was organized by the Korean side - KEPCO and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. and the Chinese side - China National Nuclear Corp. (CNNC) and China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co. (CGNPC).
KEPCO CEO Lee said in his inaugural speech his company will strive to concentrate its focus on advancing to foreign markets.
In the speech during a ceremony marking the start of his 3-year term as the 16th chairman-CEO of the company, held at the KEPCO headquarters auditorium on April 2, KEPCO Chairman Lee said, "KEPCO will focus on the development of state-of-the-art electricity technology and penetration of foreign electricity markets with a goal of developing it into a global company by 2020."CEO Lee said he will close watch a process of strategically developing advanced electricity technologies that will dominate the global market in a bid to explore futuristic growth engines while making all-out efforts to advance to foreign markets by adopting a Korean-type development model of securing energy resources abroad in return for supplying electricity with its excellent technology.
Korea has been aggressively striving to enter the Chinese nuclear power market, which is projected to grow in the years to come to meet a skyrocketing demand for power.
KEPCO has been recognized for its excellent project management capabilities and world-class electric technology prowess as it has successfully implemented projects in such countries as China, the Philippines, Lebanon and Nigeria since the mid 1990s.
Prospects for KEPCO's entry to the Chinese market are rosy. China needs to have 30,000,000 kW more power capacity every year to meet a surging power demand as the Chinese power generation market with a capacity of 380,000,000 kW as the late 2003, has grown an annual rate of 10 percent. China's annual additionally required power capacity is equivalent to 60 percent of Korea's current total power generation capacity standing at 56,000,000 kW.
China is apparently showing a keen interest in KEPCO's participation in fluidized bed combustion power and nuclear power plant projects.
In the latest development, KEPCO signed an MOU on the construction and operation of two 1,000,000 kW-class coal-fired thermal power plants at the International Convention Center in Henan Province with officials from Henan Province, Tatang International Power Co. and Jiaozouo City participating.
In the late 2004, KEPCO has already landed a project to build two 600,000 kW-class units. The project will begin in the early 2008 after obtaining the permission on the implementation of the project during the first half of this year.
The latest deal inked by KEPCO comprises involves a total of $1.65 billion investments - $620 million Phase I and $1.03 billion Phase II.
KEPCO is investing $210 million in paid-in capital to participate in the Phase I as the largest shareholder. The Phase II Project will begin in 2010 when the Phase I is dedicated. KEPCO will also lead the consortium on the Phase II project.
The latest project is favorable in terms of site location, technology and economical aspects, and KEPCO is expected to have a competitive edge in the Chinese power market as it is to build the high-performance ultra super critical plant, whose technologies have been already secured by KEPCO. nw
KEPCO CEO Lee Won-gul speaks during the Second Korean-Chinese forum on nuclear power held in Shanghai on April 24.
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