Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Reports to Trade Committee: Voting Rights Secured Even with 5% to 10% Stake in Westinghouse

The government reported to the National Assembly today (the 22nd), regarding the new nuclear power plant construction project in the U.S. pursued as a US investment project, that "voting rights can be obtained even by securing a 5% to 10% stake in Westinghouse."

An official from the Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs and Startups Committee belonging to the opposition party said immediately after a closed-door parliamentary report by Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jeong-gwan today, "I understood that we needed a stake of 10% or more to appoint directors, and that voting rights came with appointing directors, but the minister clearly stated that rather than that, even if we cannot appoint directors, we will have voting rights."

Regarding the final signing date of the MOU, the official said, "U.S. President Donald Trump will make the final announcement himself," adding, "They say that if a request comes from the U.S. side after the MOU is signed, the investment funds will be remitted within 45 days."

In addition, regarding the gas-combined cycle power plant project in the Encinal region of Texas, which was decided as the first US investment project, the official conveyed, "South Korea is bearing 100% of the construction funds for the thermal power plant, but the U.S. side is demanding a '5-to-5' equity split, and in the long term, they are talking about a 9-to-1 U.S.-to-South Korea equity split."

The official added, "The Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy also expressed frustration that the U.S. demands are unreasonable," and said, "When asked if such long-term investment plans could change after the U.S. midterm elections, he replied that 'such a possibility is also being raised within the U.S. Democratic Party.'"

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.