Hyundai Engineering & Construction Selected as Preferred Negotiation Partner for Bulgaria Nuclear Power Plant Construction

Hyundai Engineering & Construction has been selected as the preferred bidder for the construction of the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant in Bulgaria. This marks the first time in 15 years since the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the United Arab Emirates in 2009 that Hyundai Engineering & Construction has been chosen as the preferred bidder for a large overseas nuclear power plant project.

On the 23rd (local time), Hyundai Engineering & Construction announced on the 25th that it had passed the pre-qualification (PQ) for the Kozloduy nuclear power plant project bid as the sole candidate and received approval from the Bulgarian parliament.

This project involves the construction of two additional 2,200-megawatt (MW) nuclear reactors within the Kozloduy nuclear power plant complex, located 200 km north of Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. The total project cost is approximately $14 billion (about 18.7 trillion KRW).

The final contractor selection is expected to be in April, after completing negotiations with the client, the Bulgarian Nuclear Power Plant (KNPP NB), and the scale of Hyundai Engineering & Construction's contract will be determined at that time.

The Kozloduy nuclear power plant, which accounts for one-third of Bulgaria's electricity production, is the country's first nuclear power plant, constructed starting in 1969. Units 1 to 4 were shut down due to aging issues, and currently, units 5 and 6, which are pressurized water reactor models developed in Russia, are in operation.

The newly confirmed units 7 and 8 are planned to apply the AP1000 reactor design, with a goal to be operational by 2035. Although leading international companies such as Bechtel and Fluor participated in this bid, only Hyundai Engineering & Construction met the pre-qualification requirements.

Based on this achievement, Hyundai Engineering & Construction plans to accelerate its market entry not only in large nuclear power plants but also in small modular reactors (SMRs). Hyundai Engineering & Construction currently holds an exclusive contract with the U.S. nuclear company Holtec International and has begun designing the first U.S. SMR unit.

While there are limitations on locations where large nuclear power plants can be built, SMRs can be constructed near urban areas and have lower costs and fewer restrictions. Hyundai Engineering & Construction is targeting SMR construction contracts in Ukraine, Poland, Romania, and other countries.

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