April 25, 2024

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[THE INVESTOR] Korea Electric Power Corp. has no plans to acquire Toshiba’s stake in British nuclear venture NuGen, a local newspaper reported on Feb. 14 citing a ranking official of the state-run power company.

“We have not received any proposal from Toshiba,” the official was quoted as saying by Newspim. “The cash-strapped Toshiba is playing the media as part of its rescue plan.”

NuGen, a joint venture between Japan’s Toshiba and France’s Engie, was set up in 2013 to carry out a 15 billion pound (US$18.76 billion) Moorside Nuclear Power Station project that aims to build three nuclear reactors in Cumbria, UK, by 2025.

But recently speculation has been growing that Toshiba is considering selling off its 60 percent stake in the venture to off-set its 700 billion yen (US$6.2 billion) financial losses in its nuclear plant business in the US.

The KEPCO official said the firm had considered acquiring a minority stake of less than 20 percent in the past but denied its bid for Toshiba’s entire 60 percent stake.

“The British project is a long-term project that will require huge financial investments from now. It seems absurd we are joining the project as the largest shareholder at this time,” the official said.

Toshiba’s 60 percent stake in NuGen is estimated at about US$130.6 million.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)