The Regional Court in Brno today blocked by a preliminary measure the final signing of the contract for the construction of new nuclear units in Dukovany, which was scheduled for Wednesday between Elektrárna Dukovany II (EDU II) and the winner of the tender, the South Korean company Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP).
The court's decision came at the request of the French energy company Électricité de France (EDF), which filed a lawsuit against the decision of the Office for the Protection of Competition (ÚOHS).Earlier, on 24 April 2025, the ÚOHS rejected EDF's appeal and confirmed that the tender for the completion of Dukovany was conducted in accordance with the rules.
According to press releases of the Regional Court in Brno The court issued an interim measure to prevent the contract from being concluded before the final decision on EDF's action. The key reason is to protect the rights of the French bidder, as signing the contract would irreversibly prevent EDF from winning the contract even if the court later upholds its action.
"If the contract had been concluded, the plaintiff would have irretrievably lost the opportunity to obtain a public contract," the court said. The ban on signing the contract is in force until the decision on the action is taken, and the interim measure can be appealed to the Supreme Administrative Court.
In its action, EDF challenges the procedure of the Office for Competition and Consumer Protection, specifically its refusal to deal with the objections to the procedure of the tendering authority, EDU II. According to the court, EDF argues that the Office was obliged to examine whether the contracting authority had complied with the basic principles of public procurement. The President of the Office Petr Mlsna However, it stated that it was not within the Authority's remit to review these policies, which the court provisionally found to be contentious and granted an injunction. "The Regional Court in Brno provisionally assessed the applicant's arguments as relevant and relatively strong," the court's press release states. At the same time, the court stressed that the granting of the measure did not automatically mean that EDF's claim in the main proceedings was upheld.
EDU II, which is 80 % owned by the Czech state and 20 % by CEZ, responded to the court's decision by declaring that it respects the measure but insists that the tender was conducted transparently and in accordance with the law. EDU II called on EDF to publish its bid, stressing that KHNP's bid was superior in all parameters. In the event that EDF's action proves unfounded, EDU II intends to claim damages from the French company for the delays caused by the project.
The construction of Dukovany, referred to as the "contract of the century", is the largest planned investment in the Czech Republic with an estimated cost of CZK 400 billion for the construction of two reactors. The first unit should be completed in 2036, and the project is key to ensuring the country's energy security after the planned shutdown of coal-fired power plants. Financing is to be provided by a state loan for EDU II, which will be repaid over 30 years.
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