Prague: The Czech Republic's state-run energy company CEZ will soon appeal a court injunction preventing it from signing a multibillion-dollar nuclear power plant project with a South Korean consortium led by Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co. (KHNP), Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Daniel Benes said Wednesday. His remarks came a day after a Czech regional court issued an injunction temporarily suspending finalizing the estimated 26 trillion-won (US$18.6 billion) project. The injunction followed a legal challenge from French energy company EDF, a losing bidder in the tender process.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Benes announced the company's intention to file an appeal and a motion to dismiss the injunction next week. He emphasized the importance of the case and expressed optimism that the court would make a swift decision. The South Korean consortium had planned to sign the final agreement later Wednesday with Elektrarna Dukovany II (EDU II), a CEZ subsidiary overseeing the project, but the signing has been postponed pending a final ruling from the court.
Benes addressed the complexity of the closed-door bidding process, noting that legal complaints from losing bidders like EDF are not uncommon. EDF and U.S.-based Westinghouse, another unsuccessful bidder, had previously filed complaints with the Czech Office for the Protection of Competition (UOHS), challenging the government's evaluation process. In October, UOHS rejected these complaints, prompting EDF to escalate the matter to the regional court in Brno, the Czech Republic's second-largest city, last week.
The South Korean consortium was selected as the preferred bidder for constructing two 1,000-megawatt (MW) nuclear reactors at the Dukovany Nuclear Power Plant, located roughly 200 kilometers southeast of Prague. If finalized, the project would mark South Korea's first overseas nuclear plant contract since 2009, when another KHNP-led consortium secured a deal to build the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the United Arab Emirates.
Petr Zavodsky, CEO of EDU II, expressed respect for the court's decision but voiced skepticism about its implications. He indicated concerns about the ruling's potential impact on the national interest, especially as the Czech Republic aims to transform its energy strategy.
The Czech government is focused on reducing reliance on fossil fuels and increasing the share of nuclear energy. Currently, nuclear power provides about 40 percent of the country's electricity, and Prague aims to raise this to over 50 percent in the coming years. The two new reactors are planned to be built adjacent to the four existing 510-MW units at Dukovany, which have been operational since the 1980s. The first new unit is expected to begin trial operations in 2036, with the second following approximately two years later.