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.
The nuclear pact was one of the most noticeable outcomes of Monday's summit talks.
Patil arrived in Seoul on Sunday for a four-day state visit that also includes a visit to a bronze bust sculpture of Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore that was recently erected in central Seoul by the two countries to mark the 150th birth anniversary of the late poet.
She is also scheduled to visit a research complex of Samsung Group.
During the summit talks, Lee and Patil shared the view that cooperation between the two countries have been enhanced in all areas and agreed to further expand cooperation in political, security and defense industry sectors, the presidential office statement 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 and carry out projects to promote public understanding and perceptions of each other between the two countries, it said.
