Uzbek to supply 2,600T uranium to S.Korea -report

SEOUL, May 12 (Reuters) - A South Korean state nuclear power company, owned by KEPCO (015760.KS: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), has signed a contract to secure 2,600 tonnes of uranium from Uzbekistan between 2010 and 2016, valued at about $400 million, Yonhap news said on Monday.

The deal, signed during South Korean Prime Minister Han Seung-soo's visit to central Asia this week, will diversify the country's uranium import sources to six countries, including Australia, Canada and Kazakhstan, the report cited an unnamed government official.

The new supply also represents 9 percent of South Korean uranium consumption a year on an annualised basis.

Separately, Korea National Oil Corp agreed to explore oil and gas fields jointly with Uzbekistan's state gas company, UzbekNefteGaz, Yonhap reported.

In return, South Korea will provide the central Asian nation with economic cooperation funds worth $120 million during 2008 and 2011, raise a credit line to state-run banks and offer free aids to improve medical and residential facilities in Uzbekistan.

The South Korean Prime Minister's office could not be immediately reached for comment.

Resource-poor South Korea, which relies on a stable supply of raw materials to feed its export-driven economy, is keen to develop uranium mines around the world in the face of soaring global prices.

Uranium is used to fuel most of the world's nuclear reactors. Soaring oil prices and international attempts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions have put the spotlight on nuclear energy. (Reporting by Kim Yeon-hee; Editing by Anshuman Daga)