Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Engages in Legal Battle with US Westinghouse... Setback for Korea-US Nuclear Alliance

Westinghouse Sues KEPCO and KHNP... Points Out Korean-Style Nuclear Power Plant Export
"Korean-Style Nuclear Power Plant IP Belongs to Us... US Government Approval Required for Export"
Legal Dispute Between Korea and US Inevitable... Yoon Administration's 'Nuclear Alliance' Plan Also Disrupted

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

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Lee Jun-hyung] The American nuclear power company Westinghouse has filed a lawsuit against Korea Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) and Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP). The reason is that Westinghouse’s technology is used in the Korean-designed nuclear reactor (APR-1400), preventing KEPCO and KHNP from independently exporting nuclear power plants. Concerns are emerging that Korea-US nuclear cooperation could face setbacks.

According to related government departments on the 24th, Westinghouse filed a lawsuit in a US court on the 21st (local time) requesting restrictions on the export of the APR-1400. Westinghouse’s position is that KHNP must obtain approval from both Westinghouse and the US Department of Energy (DOE) to export the APR-1400 to other countries such as the Czech Republic and Poland.

Westinghouse claims that its technology is applied to the APR-1400. The APR-1400 is a third-generation reactor developed with Korea’s own technology. The APR-1400 design is said to have been influenced by the US Combustion Engineering (CE) reactor 'System 80,' specifically the improved version called 'System 80+.' Westinghouse acquired Combustion Engineering in 2000.

Founded in 1886, Westinghouse is one of the leading nuclear power companies in the US. It has provided core technology to more than half of the nuclear power plants worldwide. Its key business is the high value-added reactor design sector. Korea’s first commercial nuclear power plant, Kori Unit 1, was constructed using technology transferred from Westinghouse. Currently, Westinghouse is also competing with Korea in the Eastern European nuclear power market.

Westinghouse has consistently asserted its rights over the APR-1400’s core technology. The core of Westinghouse’s claim is that since its intellectual property (IP) is applied to the APR-1400, Korea cannot export nuclear power plants independently.

In response, KEPCO had a conflict with Westinghouse in 2017 over the APR-1400’s IP. KEPCO has yet to resolve the dispute with Westinghouse. The Korea-US High-Level Bilateral Commission on Nuclear Energy (HLBC), a channel for nuclear cooperation between Korea and the US, has not functioned properly since 2018, partly due to the escalating tensions between the two companies affecting intergovernmental relations.

Bright Expressions of the South Korea-US Leaders (Pyeongtaek=Yonhap News) Photo by Seomyeonggon = President Yoon Suk-yeol and US President Joe Biden visited the Korea Air and Space Operations Center (KAOC) at Osan Air Base on the afternoon of May 22, showing bright expressions. 2022.5.22 seephoto@yna.co.kr (End)

The problem arises if the US court sides with Westinghouse. If the US court accepts Westinghouse’s claims, KHNP’s efforts to win nuclear power plant contracts in the Czech Republic and Poland could be immediately disrupted. The Czech Republic and Poland are each pursuing new nuclear power plant construction projects worth approximately 8 trillion won and 40 trillion won, respectively.

There are also concerns that the Korea-US nuclear alliance might be faltering from the start. Earlier, the government agreed to strengthen nuclear cooperation during the Korea-US summit in May. However, the Korea-US nuclear cooperation has yet to produce visible results since the summit. The legal dispute between KEPCO, KHNP, and Westinghouse, which has surfaced on top of this, inevitably becomes an obstacle to Korea-US nuclear cooperation.

Meanwhile, KEPCO resolved the IP issue by paying Westinghouse technical advisory fees during the export of the Barakah nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). KEPCO also negotiated to subcontract the Barakah nuclear power plant’s steam turbines to Toshiba, Westinghouse’s parent company at the time.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.