S. Korea, India sign nuclear power cooperation pact

(ATTN: ADDS comments from Lee, spokesman in paras 7-9)
SEOUL, July 25 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and India signed a nuclear energy cooperation agreement Monday after a year of negotiations, paving the way for Seoul to export atomic power plants to the fast-developing nation.
The pact, signed after summit talks between President Lee Myung-bak and India's President Pratibha Patil, is a requirement and provides legal ground for South Korea's participation in India's atomic power plant construction project.



India now has 20 power-generating nuclear reactors in operation, six under construction and plans to build about 40 more by 2032. Russia, France and the U.S. have been active in India's nuclear power plant construction projects.
Seoul's state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) has been seeking cooperation with Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited to get into India's nuclear power plant construction market.
South Korea has been stepping up efforts to export nuclear power plants since Korean firms won a US$18.6 billion project in late 2009 to build four atomic power plants in the United Arab Emirates after beating their U.S., Japanese and French rivals.
During the summit talks, Lee asked Patil for India's cooperation for South Korea to get into the nuclear power plant business, the presidential office said in a statement. Lee also expressed hope for South Korea's participation in India's infrastructure construction projects, it said.
"South Korea relies on nuclear power for about 40 percent of electricity needs and has worked steadily to improve the efficiency of atomic power plants and develop technologies," Lee was quoted as saying by presidential spokesman Park Jeong-ha.
Lee also said South Korea's nuclear power technologies are "in the world's top class."
The spokesman said he anticipates that the two countries could launch negotiations on a reactor construction project in the future.
Patil arrived in Seoul on Sunday for a four-day state visit that also includes a visit to a bronze bust of the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore that the two countries erected recently in central Seoul to mark the 150th anniversary of the late poet's birth.
She is also scheduled to visit a research complex for Samsung Group.
During the summit talks, Lee and Patil shared the view that cooperation between the two countries has been enhanced in all areas and they agreed to further expand cooperation in the political, security and defense industry sectors, the statement from the presidential office said.
They also agreed to improve the free trade agreement (FTA) between the two countries, also known as the comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA), by reflecting changes in the trade environment since the trade pact went into effect in January last year, the statement said.
The two sides agreed to work together to conclude negotiations on an aviation pact, a maritime shipment accord and a double-taxation prevention treaty at an early date in a way that is beneficial to both nations, the statement said.
The leaders also agreed to cooperate closely on a series of events to mark the year of cultural exchanges between the two countries this year. The exchanges will include projects to promote public understanding and perceptions of the people of the two countries, the statement said.
jschang@yna.co.kr