Export-Import Bank of Korea to back financing for Turkey nuclear plant bid

The Export-Import Bank of Korea will provide financial support for Korea Electric Power Corporation's bid to build a nuclear power plant in Sinop, Turkey, the bank said Wednesday. The plan calls for reviewing financing options from the earliest stages of the project, given the massive capital requirements of nuclear construction, with the aim of strengthening Korean companies' competitiveness in the bidding.

The bank signed an MOU on nuclear project financial cooperation with Turkey's Nuclear Power Plants Corporation (TÜNAŞ) on Wednesday, with the leaders of the two countries in attendance.

TÜNAŞ is a state-owned enterprise established in 2022 that handles site investigation and licensing for new nuclear power plant projects. The agreement follows an MOU on nuclear cooperation that Korea Electric Power Corporation and TÜNAŞ signed last November, and extends the scope of cooperation to the financial sphere.

Korea Electric Power Corporation is currently conducting a preliminary feasibility study for a project to build four APR1400 reactors in the Sinop region in northern Turkey. A "Team Korea" consortium — comprising the government, Korea Electric Power Corporation, and domestic equipment and construction companies — is in talks with the Turkish side with the goal of securing the main contract.

Under the MOU, the Export-Import Bank of Korea will cooperate in analyzing the financial model for the new nuclear project and establishing an appropriate funding structure. The two sides will also exchange information to assess the feasibility of financial support and operate a working-level consultative body to review specific cooperation measures.

Because nuclear power plants require large-scale capital over extended construction and operating periods, reviewing financing terms from the outset is particularly critical. The bank plans to draw on its experience financing the Barakah nuclear power plant in the UAE to examine the Sinop project's viability and risk factors, and to develop concrete financial support measures.

Turkey is pursuing an expansion of nuclear capacity to strengthen energy security and achieve carbon neutrality, with targets of 7.2 GW of nuclear capacity by 2035 and 20 GW by 2050. The Sinop plant is a four-reactor project included in that plan.

"This MOU is an important milestone in translating the two leaders' commitment to nuclear cooperation into concrete financial collaboration," Export-Import Bank of Korea President Hwang Ki-yeon said. "Winning large overseas nuclear contracts hinges on both technological capability and the ability to offer competitive long-term financing at scale, so we will work to provide optimal financial solutions and actively support Team Korea's bid for the Turkish nuclear project."

Meanwhile, the Export-Import Bank of Korea is also expanding its investment in clean energy beyond nuclear financing. The bank recently committed $20 million in direct investment in Amogy, a US-based clean energy technology company specializing in ammonia-based power, as part of its broader push to support the commercialization of next-generation zero-carbon power technologies.