Nuclear power shares take off as Korea signs project deal with Poland

Nuclear power-related company shares are skyrocketing Tuesday, as expectations are rising over Korea’s signing of the Patnow nuclear power plant project deal with Poland.

Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Lee Chang-yang and Jacek Sasin, Poland's minister of State Assets, sign a memorandum of understanding for cooperation between the two countries on nuclear energy development in Seoul on Monday. [YONHAP]

Nuclear power-related company shares are skyrocketing Tuesday, as expectations are rising over Korea’s signing of the Patnow nuclear power plant project deal with Poland.

Shares of Doosan Enerbility, a nuclear reactor equipment supplier, surged 21.89 percent to trade at 16,200 won ($11) at 11:30 a.m. on the main bourse Kospi.

Kospi-listed Kepco Engineering & Construction (Kepco E&C) peaked at 27.29 percent to 63,200 won. Kepco E&C is a nuclear reactor constructor 65.77 percent owned by Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco), the state-owned power supplier.

The Tuesday rally came as Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power signed a letter of intent Monday with Poland’s Zespol Elektrowni Patnow-Adamov-Konin (ZE PAK) and state-owned Polska Grupa Energetyczna to cooperate on developing the 1.4-gigawatt Patnow project, which will be built on the site of Poland's Patnow thermal power plant, which will shut down in 2024.

The project is forecast to be worth up to 40 trillion won, according to local media reports.

If it proceeds as planned, the Patnow project will be Korea’s first full nuclear power plant export in 13 years after the Barakah nuclear power plant project deal with the United Arab Emirates.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]