Hanmi Global Enters Nuclear Power Market... Wins PM Contract for Cernavodă Nuclear Infrastructure in Romania

[Financial News] Hanmi Global, a global construction project management (PM) specialist, announced on the 6th that it has won the PM service contract for the infrastructure construction project to improve the facilities of Unit 1 at the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant in Romania.
After establishing a dedicated nuclear power department last year, it is the first step in entering the overseas nuclear power market.
In December last year, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power signed a contract with Romania's Nuclear Power Corporation (SNN) for the facility improvement project of Unit 1 at Cernavodă. Hanmi Global has won the PM service contract for the infrastructure construction part of this project from Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power. The service fee is about 10 billion KRW.
This project is a facility improvement project to extend the lifespan of a nuclear power plant, which started commercial operation in 1996 and has reached its service life, by 30 years. The plant is a 706MW-class CANDU reactor, and SNN is pursuing a facility improvement project, including replacing outdated equipment, aiming for continued operation of the plant from 2030.
This project is carried out by an engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) consortium consisting of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, Canada's Candu Energy, and Italy's Ansaldo Nuclear. Among them, Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power, together with domestic companies such as KEPCO KPS, Doosan Enerbility, Hyundai Engineering & Construction, and Samsung C&T, forms Team Korea to handle the overall construction, including the replacement of major and auxiliary equipment and the construction of key infrastructure facilities such as radioactive waste storage facilities.
The Cernavodă Unit 1 facility improvement project in Romania is a high-difficulty project where the interests of the EPC consortium of global companies, the ordering party, and the project owner are complex, and the schedule linkage between each process must be high for the continued operation of the expired nuclear power plant. Completing the construction on the exact schedule is considered a key factor that determines the success of subsequent facility improvement processes. Therefore, Hanmi Global plans to lead the successful execution of the project through PM solutions such as construction project phase management strategies, process, cost, and risk integrated management systems, local regulation response, claims, and technical advice.
Hanmi Global has been steadily preparing for entry into the nuclear power business by acquiring Walker Sime, a UK PM specialist company with experience in nuclear power construction projects, in 2022, and establishing a dedicated nuclear power department last year. Based on this project, the company plans to strategically link Walker Sime's experience in major European projects and expertise in cost and construction cost management to create synergy and build a more precise advanced PM system required for global nuclear power projects in the UK and Europe.
Meanwhile, Hanmi Global signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in the nuclear power business with Korea Electric Power Technology on the 18th, and the two companies agreed to enhance business management capabilities in nuclear power design and create new business opportunities. Korea Electric Power Technology is a Korean nuclear power design agency with core technologies such as nuclear power design and engineering, and safety analysis. In particular, the two companies plan to jointly respond to new business opportunities in the domestic and international nuclear power markets, including large nuclear power plants, small modular reactors (SMRs), nuclear power plant decommissioning, and radioactive waste disposal facility construction, by strengthening technical cooperation throughout the entire lifecycle of nuclear power.
Hanmi Global's Nuclear Group Director, No Hee-sang, said, "This Cernavodă nuclear power project is the first order in our country's overseas aging nuclear power continued operation market, and it is expected that the diversification of nuclear power export methods will continue," adding, "Hanmi Global will use this as a bridgehead to expand its business area with various business models throughout the entire lifecycle of nuclear power, not only in Europe but also in the Middle East and Asia."

ming@fnnews.com Min-kyung Jeon Reporter