KEPCO NF, which is specialized in design and manufacture of nuclear fuel, exported 15 thousand zirconium alloy tubes for PWR, a core component of nuclear fuel, to Westinghouse Electric Company of the United States for the first time on December 16, 2011. KEPC NF and WEC earlier concluded an agreement that calls for shipping 50 thousand zirconium alloy jacket pipes worth US$2 million to WEC for a period of three years.

Zirconium alloy tubes, which account for up to 70% of the nuclear fuel part cost, are a core component of nuclear fuel for which Korea had depended entirely on imports. However, KEPCO NF has succeeded in localization of zirconium alloy pipes and produced some 300 thousand tubes a year since 2009 through the Korea-originated technology for manufacturing tubes and evaluating performance. The localization of alloy tubes provides Korea with an import
substitution effect of 40 billion won a year. More important is the fact that Korea has secured a stable supply of zirconium alloy tubes which are regarded as a strategic material globally.

“The export of zirconium alloy jacket pipes to Westinghouse Electric Company signifies that our technology superiority and high product quality have been recognized worldwide,” said KEPCO NF President Kim Ki-Hak. He predicted that the export of zirconium alloy tubes will increase in the years ahead.

For successful export of zirconium alloy jacket pipes, KEPCO NF has begun to obtain public recognition of its production equipment, system and manpower since February 2009. The Company, as a result, obtained a supplier certificate from WEC in December 2010.