Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with French nuclear company Orano to pursue long-term cooperation in uranium enrichment, as the Korean utility seeks to diversify its nuclear fuel supply chain and strengthen access to Western suppliers.
KHNP said on Sept. 9 that the LOI was signed on Sept. 8 local time at the Élysée Palace in Paris in the presence of the presidents of South Korea and France.
The agreement builds on a memorandum of understanding signed by KHNP and Orano in April during French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to South Korea. While the earlier agreement established a broad framework for cooperation across the nuclear fuel cycle, the latest LOI focuses more specifically on uranium enrichment and is intended to lay the groundwork for longer-term cooperation.
Uranium enrichment is a critical stage in the nuclear fuel cycle. Natural uranium must be processed and enriched before it can be fabricated into fuel for commercial nuclear reactors, making reliable access to enrichment services an important element of long-term nuclear power generation.
The latest agreement comes as nuclear fuel supply chains face growing geopolitical uncertainty. Russia has historically played a major role in the global uranium enrichment market, while Western countries have been seeking to reduce their dependence on Russian nuclear fuel services and develop alternative sources.
Against this backdrop, KHNP is looking to expand its network of reliable suppliers in Western countries. Cooperation with Orano could give the Korean utility an additional channel for securing enrichment services while reducing exposure to disruptions stemming from geopolitical tensions or excessive reliance on individual suppliers.
Orano operates the Georges Besse II uranium enrichment facility at the Tricastin nuclear site in southern France. The facility has an annual enrichment capacity of about 7.5 million separative work units (SWU), and Orano is expanding its capacity to meet rising demand for Western uranium enrichment services.
The French company has been positioning the expansion as part of efforts to strengthen the Western nuclear fuel supply chain. Demand for enrichment capacity is expected to increase as countries pursue new nuclear power projects and seek alternatives to Russian nuclear fuel supplies.
For KHNP, securing long-term access to additional enrichment capacity could become increasingly important as South Korea continues to operate its domestic nuclear fleet while pursuing opportunities in overseas nuclear markets.
The Korean nuclear industry has traditionally focused on the competitiveness of reactor design, construction and operation. However, the global nuclear market is increasingly placing greater emphasis on the resilience of the entire supply chain, including uranium procurement, conversion, enrichment, fuel fabrication and spent fuel management.
A stable nuclear fuel supply can therefore strengthen the competitiveness of Korean nuclear power projects, particularly when utilities and governments are seeking to secure long-term fuel supplies alongside reactor construction and operation.
The agreement also underscores the expanding scope of nuclear cooperation between South Korea and France. The two countries have maintained industrial ties in the nuclear sector, but cooperation is increasingly extending beyond power plant construction and operation into the upstream nuclear fuel cycle.
Orano has businesses spanning uranium mining, conversion, enrichment and nuclear fuel cycle services, giving the company a broad industrial base across the front end of the nuclear fuel cycle. KHNP's partnership with Orano could therefore provide opportunities to expand cooperation beyond uranium enrichment over time.
The French company is also strengthening its enrichment capabilities as Western governments seek greater control over nuclear fuel supply chains. Such investments are expected to play a growing role in reducing dependence on suppliers outside the Western nuclear fuel market.
KHNP and Orano plan to use the LOI as a basis for developing specific long-term cooperation measures in uranium enrichment and gradually expanding the scope of their partnership.
The agreement is expected to strengthen KHNP’s ability to manage nuclear fuel procurement risks while providing Orano with a potential long-term partner in South Korea, one of the world’s major nuclear power markets.
Kim Hoe-cheon, president and CEO of KHNP, said securing reliable suppliers in advance is becoming increasingly important as uncertainty in the global nuclear fuel market grows.
“We will use this LOI as an opportunity to expand cooperation between the two companies and further strengthen the stability of nuclear fuel supplies,” Kim said.
Claude Imauven, chairman of Orano’s board of directors, said the partnership would further strengthen cooperation in uranium enrichment and expressed expectations for continued collaboration in the front end of the nuclear fuel cycle.
The latest agreement marks another step in South Korea’s efforts to build a more diversified nuclear fuel procurement network. As demand for nuclear power rises and countries seek to restructure their fuel supply chains around more reliable and politically stable sources, access to Western enrichment capacity is likely to become an increasingly important factor in the global nuclear industry.
