The Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute said yesterday that it will probably bid again for a nuclear research reactor project pursued by the Netherlands in the second half of this year.
Institute director Yang Myeong-seung said, “We are actively considering re-entering the bid for PALLAS, a project on the construction of a nuclear research reactor in the Netherlands.”
The Netherlands selected Argentina’s INVAP in June last year as the priority partner for the project, which involves construction of an 80-megawatt nuclear research reactor, and is in the final stage of the negotiation process.
The runner-up in the bid was a Korean consortium comprising the institute, Korea Power Engineering Co., and Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction.
Energy Research Center of the Netherlands, however, sent an e-mail to Yang Jan. 15 saying it called off negotiations with INVAP.
Yang said, “The Netherlands is likely to conduct another international tender in the second half of this year. Since the Korean consortium was highly praised for its outstanding design, technology and production capabilities in the first bid, it has a high chance of winning the bid.”
The think tank is reportedly is reviewing legal matters for its second attempt at the PALLAS bid.
The contract is worth 700 billion won (608 million U.S. dollars), and if it wins the bid, Korea is expected to dethrone Argentina as the world leader in nuclear research reactors.
Korea last month won its first export contract for a nuclear research reactor worth 200 billion won (173 million dollars) from Jordan.
The think tank is also pursuing the export of a fuel test loop to the Japan Materials Testing Reactor under the Japan Atomic Energy Agency as early as May. The loop is a facility confirming the performance of nuclear fuel and is inside the Korean nuclear research reactor Hanaro.
The loop saw construction completed last year and is undergoing a test run. The loop is considered the most advanced of its kind in the world.
The contract is expected to be worth 40 billion to 50 billion won (34 million to 43 million dollars).