South Korea fights for NPP contract despite technology dispute with U.S.
A delegation from Korea’s KHNP visited Warsaw to discuss plans to build a nuclear power plant in Pątnów. This took place despite a dispute with Westinghouse over technology.
KHNP sent a delegation to Warsaw to talk with the Ministry of State Assets and PGE about the details on the construction of a nuclear power plant in Pątnów, a district of Konin. KHNP has APR1400 technology and could provide two to four nuclear units to replace ZE PAK’s Pątnów-Adamów-Konin Power Plants. PGE and ZE PAK established a company called PGE PAK Nuclear Energy to run the project in cooperation with the Koreans.
KHNP and Westinghouse are in a dispute over control of the APR1400 technology developed by Combustion Engineering, which was acquired by the Americans. Westinghouse, which plans to build the atom in Pomerania, says it has a license for the technology and claims Korea needs approval from the U.S. State Department to export it to Poland. The Koreans reject this interpretation and claim that they have „Koreanized” the Combustion Engineering solution.
Wojciech Jakóbik
It is still unknown whether the Kazakh oil in Germany is actually Russian
„It is still not clear whether the origin of the Kazakh oil processed at the Schwedt refinery is being verified, ” writes the Maerkische Oderzeitung.
The paper states that the KEBCO blend had been labeled as Russian REBCO before 2022. The change came after sanctions were imposed for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to distinguish the crude from Kazakhstan reaching Europe through Russian oil pipelines.
„The Ministry of Economy and Climate Protection leaves questions about whether and to what extent tests of this kind are technically possible unanswered,” reads the MOZ, which quoted BiznesAlert.pl’s article that explained the position of the Polish Climate Ministry. The ministry expects Germany to present documents confirming that the oil reaching Schwedt is actually Kazakh. The Friendship Oil pipeline passes through Poland. Poles are concerned that it actually transmits Russian oil.
The discussion on oil from Kazakhstan does not undermine cooperation between Poland and Germany. The countries’ ministries are currently trying to formalize the situation, so that supplies are not carried out under contracts with the Russians through the northern strand of the Friendship Oil Pipeline. They are demanding that the EU imposes sanctions on this section of the pipe, because the southern one is still used for deliveries from Russia to the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.
There are also ongoing discussions about the possible derusification of the Schwedt refinery by divesting 54 percent of Rosneft’s shares. Currently, until September, the Russian shares will remin under a trusteeship imposed by the German government, but Poles demand that Russians be removed completely. It’s been reported that PKN Orlen was interested in replacing them.
MOZ / Wojciech Jakóbik
PERN invests in Dębogórze hoping to attract partners from Ukraine in the future
PERN is developing a fuel base in Dębogórze, which can be used by partners from Ukraine. „The fuel hub in Dębogórze is ready for cooperation with Ukrainian entities,” said Paweł Stańczyk, vice president of PERN, during the Nafta and Gaz 2023 conference.
PERN is growing its critical infrastructure in Pomerania. In addition to the naftoport in the Port of Gdańsk, where it handles oil and petroleum products, it also manages a fuel base in Dębogórze. This enables cooperation with German and Ukrainian companies in the field of marine fuel supplies.
„The Polish oil and fuel system has proven to be resistant to the situation that we are witnessing abroad. Many factors have contributed to this, including investments in fuel logistics. At the moment we have the naftoport, which receives raw materials. When it comes to fuel, Polish refineries process enough oil for the needs of Poles,” said Paweł Stańczyk, vice president of PERN.
Stańczyk noted that Poland could currently import the amount of oil that is enough for Polish refineries, but the potential of the product terminal in Dębogórze also gives a chance to cooperate with Ukraine. „We are expanding the naftoport, but it should be remembered that we are doing the same with the fuel hub in Dębogórze, and this is also a potential place that is ready and can serve Ukrainian partners,” he added in the context of the future development of Polish-Ukrainian trade after the war.
The PERN fuel base in Dębogórze (Pomerania) in January of this year recorded a record turnover, unloading two thirds more fuel than in January 2022, or about 350 thousand cubic meters. PERN continues to invest in increasing the capabilities of the base.
Jędrzej Stachura