Good news for Dukovany: European Commission closes KHNP review

The European Commission has decided to close its preliminary review concerning the completion of the Dukovany nuclear power plant. It concerned foreign subsidies for South Korean company KHNP, which is set to build the new units. Industry Minister Karel Havlíček (ANO) wrote on X this evening that this was good news for the project. The review was intended to assess whether potential financial contributions received by the Korean company constitute foreign subsidies and, if so, whether such support distorts the EU internal market. It was based on the 2022 Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR) on foreign subsidies distorting the internal market. The European executive launched the preliminary review last year. ČTK is seeking a statement from the Commission.

"Based on the joint efforts and demanding negotiations of all parties concerned, including the government of the Czech Republic, the European Commission has just decided to close the preliminary review under the Regulation on foreign subsidies distorting the internal market (EU FSR) in relation to KHNP and the new nuclear power source project at the Dukovany site. This is good news for the project, for the development of the nuclear industry and for ensuring energy security in the future in the Czech Republic and the European Union," Havlíček said.

The planned expansion of Dukovany, the older of the Czech Republic's two nuclear power plants, by two units is the largest contract in the history of the independent Czech Republic. The then government of Petr Fiala (ODS) decided the year before last that KHNP would carry out the completion. The total cost of the two reactors, at current prices, was put at more than 400 billion crowns. ČEZ subsequently began negotiations with the Koreans on completing the nuclear power plant in the Třebíč region. The first new Dukovany unit could be completed in 2036, with the second following a year later.