S. Korea to swap stake in KEPCO unit with Kazakh mine

SEOUL, Aug. 9 (Yonhap) -- South Korea is considering swapping a stake in the industrial plant unit of the state-run Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) for a share in a uranium mine in Kazakhstan, the commerce ministry here said Tuesday.
According to the Ministry of Knowledge Economy, Seoul has a plan to give a 5 percent stake in KEPCO Plant Service & Engineering Co. (KPS) to Kazakhstan in return for a 15 percent interest in an undetermined uranium mine in the Central Asian country.
The 5 percent KPS stake is valued at 76.5 billion won (US$70.1 million), based on its closing price of 33,000 won on the Seoul bourse as of Monday.
Seoul had been in talks with Astana over buying uranium products from Kazakhstan but is seeking an alternative measure after it decided not to buy them, citing low quality.
"KEPCO should sell its stake in KPS to comply with government policy. So it is trying to link it with the Kazakh deal," said a ministry official