UAE NUCLEAR TENDER UPDATE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ABU DHABI 000827 NOFORN SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR ISN/NESS, EEB/CBA AND NEA/ARP NSC FOR JOST COMMERCE FOR ITA E.O. 12958: 08/18/2019 TAGS: ENRG KNNP PGOV ECON ETRD AE SUBJECT: UAE NUCLEAR TENDER UPDATE CLASSIFIED BY AMBASSADOR RICHARD G. OLSON FOR REASONS 1.4 B AND D REFS: A) ABU DHABI 491 B) ABU DHABI 157 C) 08 ABU DHABI 1432 ¶1. (C/NF) Summary: Three international consortia are bidding on the UAE's nuclear power plant tender (reftels) valued at over USD 20 billion. KEPCO (now teamed with Westinghouse) appears to have the technical and commercial advantage, while Areva, teamed with Bechtel, is leveraging its French government connections. The GE/Hitachi team appears far behind the front runners. A downselect to two consortia is expected in late August; key officials say the contract is still on schedule for a September 16 signature. End Summary. ¶2. (C/NF) Although bidders expected a final downselect to two competitors in late July, Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC), along with project manager CH2MHill, continues negotiations with three international consortia pursuing the nuclear tender: GE/Hitachi/Excelon (US/Japan/US),Areva/Bechtel/Gas de France (GDF) (France/US/France),and KEPCO/Westinghouse (Korea/US). Negotiations with each consortium of a nuclear steam supply system (NSSS) provider, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor, and operator are now expected to continue until August 21, when price revisions are due. Executive Affairs Authority (EAA) Director of Economic Affairs Dave Scott (protect throughout) told EconOff on August 18 that there were significant price discrepancies between the three bidders, and ENEC had visited Japan, Korea and France to clarify pricing issues. Scott said it was clear that all three consortia could perform the required work, now it was just a question of which firms would be the best match for the UAE program. The planned downselect to two firms, likely KEPCO and Areva, is now expected before the end of August. All key UAE nuclear interlocutors report the announced September 16 deadline for contract award is still the target. KEPCO/WESTINGHOUSE -------------- ¶3. (C/NF) KEPCO has long appeared to be the frontrunner in this competition. Following the early May downselect to three consortia (Ref A),Scott told EconOff that the Koreans had scored first of the seven bidders. During a July 23 meeting with EconOff, Thorium Power representative Dennis Hays (a key nuclear program advisor) (protect throughout) reported the Koreans were still head and shoulders above everyone else. Their price is better ("by a factor of 2"),and their delivery schedule solid. Further, Hays said the Koreans can be trusted to stay on schedule with minimal oversight, a fact that would ease the initial burden on ENEC as it gets up to speed. Beyond the technical advantage of the KEPCO bid, Korean officials continue to engage in significant lobbying for the tender. The Korean Ambassador told Charge that Korea's President may visit in late August to lobby for KEPCO's bid. ¶4. (C/NF) UAE officials, including MFA Special Representative for Nuclear Cooperation Hamad Al Kaabi and EAA Director Scott repeatedly told EconOff over the past year that they were "very impressed" with the Korean model. As the UAE's nuclear power program is complementary to its economic diversification and national employment effort, the Korean model of developing a high-tech national industry around the original Westinghouse nuclear technology was likely attractive. ¶5. (C/NF) In mid-July, Westinghouse, which had been eliminated in the initial stages of the tender (reftels),told SCO and EconOff that it had joined the KEPCO consortium. Westinghouse reported that ENEC encouraged the firm to join another consortium after it did not make the first downselect in May. While it is unclear if KEPCO was specifically mentioned, it was clearly very important to the UAEG that each consortium had a U.S. component. AREVA/BECHTEL -------------- ¶6. (C/NF) Given the importance of delivering power by the 2017 target, Areva - given its significant delays in Finland and France - has not appeared to be the strongest bidder. Thorium's Hays told EconOff the only French advantage was political. Hays said that if ENEC's view was the only factor, KEPCO would win, as the French bid is not compelling on paper. But the French military, diplomatic, and ABU DHABI 00000827 002 OF 002 cultural ties to the UAE could be a factor. Hays opined that the U.S. content of the Areva bid was likely the highest, as Bechtel would do much of the design work in the United States and Areva has manufacturing facilities in Virginia. (NOTE: Bechtel's UAE Country Manager told EconOff on August 16 that the firm has already approached KEPCO and GE/Hitachi about its interest in subcontracting opportunities if Areva loses. End Note.) ¶7. (C/NF) If Areva is not selected, Hays said ENEC could offer them the fuel contract and the training segment as a consolation prize. Both segments could be spun off into separate tenders, and the Koreans could do what they excel at: technology and construction. Areva has told us that they have a very active international training program. However, the French Charge told EconOff on August 10 that, due to high demand, Areva tends to prioritize fuel supply and reprocessing for those who purchase Areva technology. GE/HITACHI -------------- ¶8. (C/NF) The GE/Hitachi-led consortium never seemed to garner much interest from the Emiratis, although it was unclear whether the quality of the bid was not strong, or there were specific concerns about the technology. A local GE rep told EconOff on August 17 that ENEC and other UAEG officials had repeatedly told the GE consortium that they were not acting like a "team," even after GE/Hitachi took specific steps to improve partner coordination. LEGAL PROGRESS -------------- ¶9. (C/NF) While the UAE has acceded to three of the four IAEA conventions outlined in its 2008 White Paper (Convention on Nuclear Safety, Joint Convention on the Safety of Spent Fuel Management, and Amendment to the Convention on the Physical Protection),the national nuclear law is still awaiting presidential signature. The EAA's Dave Scott told EconOff on August 18 that Minister of Presidential Affairs Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, who is currently abroad, is expected back within days and will present the law to the President for signature. Scott was optimistic the law would be ratified before the end of August. ¶10. (C/NF) Regardless of the law completion, ENEC Interim CEO Mohamed Al Hammadi told EconOff on August 5 that the Abu Dhabi Government, perhaps the Executive Affairs Authority, could sign the contract on behalf of ENEC if the nuclear law was not finalized before mid-September. FANR DG Designate Bill Travers told EconOff in late July that he did not view FANR's establishment as a mandatory step before the contract was awarded. Travers said that the initial work on the tender would not be dependent on FANR guidance or regulations. OLSON