President Yoon Suk Yeol arrived in the Czech Republic on Thursday to begin his four-day trip aimed at boosting South Korea's bid to win a major nuclear project and boosting economic ties with the European country. On the first day, Yoon is scheduled to have summit talks with Czech President Petr Pavel to discuss ways to expand cooperation in nuclear energy, trade, investment, technology and other areas, in light of the European country's selection of the Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power (KHNP) as a preferred bidder to build two nuclear power plants. Yoon aims to reaffirm Seoul's commitment to the successful implementation of the Czech nuclear project and lay the groundwork for forging a "nuclear energy alliance" between the two nations, according to his office. The trip comes at a time when the project faces a legal challenge as U.S.-based Westinghouse Electric filed an appeal with Czech authorities last month, arguing that KHNP's reactor designs are based on its technology. The deal, estimated at around 24 trillion won (US$17.3 billion), will mark South Korea's second nuclear power plant export, following its 2009 project in the United Arab Emirates. It is expected to be finalized by the first quarter of next year. Source: Yonhap News Agency