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| Korea Electric Power Corp. CEO Cheong Seung-il, second from left, and Westinghouse Electric Company President and CEO Patrick Fragman, second from right, exchange opinions at a meeting, Wednesday. Courtesy of KEPCO |
By Lee Kyung-min
The CEOs of two Korean state-run energy firms held separate meetings with their counterpart at Westinghouse Electric Company, a U.S. nuclear power firm, Thursday, over joint cooperation in overseas nuclear energy projects, according to Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) and its subsidiary Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP).
KEPCO CEO Cheong Seung-il met with Patrick Fragman, president and CEO of Westinghouse Electric Company, Wednesday, to bolster cooperation in joint overseas nuclear business opportunities. Fragman, who is visiting the country for three days, also met with KHNP CEO Chung Jae-hoon, Thursday.
The two closed-door meetings were a follow-up to the Korea-U.S. summit last month between President Yoon Suk-yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden. The two leaders reiterated their commitment to leading the global nuclear power industry via strategic partnerships to cement a strong global market presence.
The CEOs agreed to bolster cooperation in the nuclear industry including efforts to win joint business projects overseas and other areas.
"Bilateral cooperation will bear a fruitful outcome, as expected by the combination of Korea's excellent business management capabilities, technology and supply chain management know-how and the strengths of Westinghouse Electric Company," KEPCO and KHNP said in a joint statement.
Wednesday's meeting is the beginning of tangible progress in joint activities, to be followed by the establishment of cooperative working groups and committees composed of representatives from both countries, the two said.
"The cooperation is expected to gain momentum without major roadblocks, buoyed by the new policy initiative of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration which is seeking to win 10 advance orders of nuclear projects overseas by 2030," they said.
During his three-day visit through Friday, the U.S. CEO will visit Ulsan where Shin Kori reactors 3 and 4 are in operation and reactors 5 and 6 are under construction, to help determine the construction, operation and maintenance capabilities of Korea's nuclear power plants.
