[News Today] Czech court halts power plant deal

[LEAD]
A major setback for Korea's nuclear ambitions in Central Europe. The final signing ceremony for a new nuclear power plant contract in the Czech Republic, scheduled for today, has been canceled. A Czech court has blocked the signing of the deal, upholding a preliminary injunction filed by France's EDF, KHNP's rival in the bidding process.

[REPORT]
A Czech court has issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the signing of a contract worth 26 trillion won (over USD 18 billion) with a South Korean consortium led by the Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power to build a new nuclear power plant.

The regional court on Tuesday upheld a legal complaint from the losing bidder, France's EDF, which was the KHNP's bidding rival.

The court ruling says, "If the contract were concluded, EDF would lose the possibility of winning the public contract, even if the court rules in its favor in the litigation."

Earlier, EDF filed a complaint against the Czech Office for the Protection of Competition after the KHNP was picked as a preferred bidder.

The complaint was rejected last month, but EDF refused to accept the decision and filed an administrative lawsuit.

On Tuesday, the local court ruled that the signing of the deal must be put on hold until a verdict is issued.

As a result, the signing of the contract slated for Wednesday has been cancelled.

The South Korean government appears dumbfounded, as it had not expected such legal issues.

Ahn Duk-geun / Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy
Except for the official contract, everything else we have prepared is planned to be carried out as scheduled, including multiple MOUs.

The KHNP says it respects the Czech court's decision and will abide by the relevant laws.

It also stressed that the bidding process for the new nuclear power plant was conducted in a fair, transparent and legal manner.

The Czech Republic's main electricity firm, CEZ, is to hold a news conference on Wednesday afternoon Korea time to announce its stance.