The Czech Ministry of Industry & Trade (MPO – Ministerstvo průmyslu a obchodu) has responded to the controversy provoked by a letter from the European Commission (EC) asking that signing the contract with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) for construction of new units at the Dukovany NPP should be postponed. MPO said the letter, sent to Industry Minister Lukáš Vlček by French EC Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné, was not legally binding.
The letter is the latest in a string of developments that hindered the contract signature. In July 2024, a South Korean consortium led by KHNP was selected by ČEZ subsidiary Elektrárny Dukovany II (EDU-II) as the preferred bidder for the construction of up to four new NPP units at the Dukovany and Temelín NPP sites, with two reactors (units 5&6) confirmed for Dukovany.
KHNP won the tender against both US Westinghouse and France’s EDF. Both companies appealed to the Czech Republic’s competition authority (UOHS – Úřad pro Ochranu Hospodářské Soutěže) about the selection process. Westinghouse later withdrew its appeal and EDF’s was rejected by UOHS in April. The Czech authorities then scheduled the contract signing for 7 May, but on 6 May the Regional Court in Brno, acting on a new complaint by EDF, ruled that the contract could not be signed until EDF’s complaint had been dealt with.
The Séjourné letter provoked angry responses from Czech officials, alleging that the EC was acting in the interests of EDF. EC spokesman Thomas Regnier denied this and also insisted that the letter was not a request to suspend the contract, despite the fact that the letter was entitled: Request for immediate steps to suspend the signing of the contract for new nuclear reactors in Dukovany.
The three-page letter, the text of which was subsequently published by Euractiv, was marked “Sensitive” for “Distribution only on a need-to-know basis”. It noted that the EC is still undertaking a “preliminary investigation” into whether the winning bid for Dukovany is contrary to the rules of fair competition and European legislation. It concerns compliance with the 2022 Regulation on Foreign Subsidies (FSR). Séjourné’s letter said: “The obligation of loyal cooperation requires the Czech Republic to avoid any situation that would be irreversibly contrary to the concerns raised in this letter and which could have irreversible effects preventing the effective application of the FSR.”
The letter said request for information as part of the EC investigation had been sent to EDU-II and KHNP in February but that neither had “provided adequate information in response to those requests”. As a result, “the Commission is currently in the process of preparing a decision initiating an in-depth investigation”.
In a statement responding to the letter, MPO said the EC had confirmed that “the courtesy letter sent to Minister Vlček by the French European Commissioner Séjourné is not legally binding”. MPO “replied to the letter within four working days of its receipt, after evaluating the binding nature of the courtesy letter and verifying the French European Commissioner’s allegations with the companies and authorities concerned”.
MPO said KHNP had answered the EC’s February request for information “and has not received any reaction since”. As to the request to ČEZ or EDU II, “as already stated by ČEZ, it was not sent to the CEO of Dukovany II Petr Závodský or any other relevant person, but to an unused general company e-mail”. The request “was also not accompanied by any further communication” and “EDU II will send its reply in the coming days”.
In his reply to Séjourné, Vlček said the Czech authorities were ready to provide the EC “with all the necessary cooperation”. He also stated that, “according to MPO’s expert opinion, the EPC contract with KHNP is not covered by the Foreign Subsidies Regulation”. This is “both because of the nature of the contract itself and because the tender was launched before the effective date of this regulation”.
Minister Vlček also posted on X and on Facebook that “the courtesy letter from French commissioner Séjourné regarding the Dukovany project is not legally binding and is not a formal step”. He added: “We stand behind the fact that the tender for the new nuclear power plant in Dukovany was fair, transparent and led to the selection of the most advantageous offer. According to the expert opinion of the MPO, the contract with KHNP is not covered by the regulation on foreign subsidies – both because of its nature and due to the fact that the tender was launched before the regulation entered into force.”
