Lightbridge Corporation has been selected as technical advisor to provide independent re-verification of equipment and material procurement processes related to nuclear power plants operated by Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Company (KHNP).
KHNP currently operates 23 nuclear plants in South Korea and is part of the consortium building two new reactors in the UAE.
Under the two-year contract, Lightbridge will act as a subcontractor to London-based Lloyd’s Register Group, along with Paul C. Rizzo Associates, Inc. of Monroeville, Pennsylvania.
Lightbridge will focus on the environmental and seismic qualification, and commercial grade dedication aspects of the contract, a statement said.
The contract comes after falsely certified parts were discovered in South Korean nuclear power plants in 2012. In May 2013, the Korean regulator ordered four reactors [Shin Kori 1&2 and Shin Wolsong 1&2] to replace safety-related cabling after it discovered forged safety certificates. Then CEO, Kim Kyun-seop, resigned over the incident this summer.
In September, KHNP appointed a new CEO, Cho Seok, former vice minister of Korea’s Ministry of Knowledge Economy, who has pledged organizational and cultural reform of KHNP.